-#- 


n  i 


A    FAST    GAME 


BY   KIRK   PARSON 


BOSTON 
THE  ROXBURGH  PUBLISHING  COMPANY 

(  INCORPORATED  ) 


Copyrighted.  1910 
By  The  Roxburgh  Publishing  Co.  (Inc.) 

All  Rights  Reserved 


CONTENTS. 

Chapter  Page 

I  THE  ANTHRACITE 1 

II  NAOMI 11 

III  THE  BLACK  DIAMOND  COMPANY  .      .      .  31 

IV  SUMMER  TIME 43 

V  AN  ENEMY 61 

VI  MuTTERINGS 77 

VII  THE  OTHER  SIDE 98 

VIII  INTIMIDATION 112 

IX  PRINCE  ARTHUR 136 

X  DISASTER  AND  DEATH 152 

XI  WHITE  AND  BLACK  SLAVES     ....  169 

XII  SOME  NEW  DEVELOPMENTS     ....  184 

XIII  A  COLD  WAVE 196 

XIV  THE  SUSPENSION 208 

XV  UNCLE  EZEKIEL'S  VISIT 227 

XVI  THE  TRAIL  OF  A  STRUGGLE    ....  247 

XVII  CRIMSON-EBONY 263 

XVIII  WHERE  Two  WAYS  MEET       ....  278 

XIX  A  CLASH  AT  THE  MINES 294 

XX  SEVERAL  SURPRISES 308 

XXI  PEACE  327 


2137S57 


PREFACE 

The  playground  of  "A  Fast  Game"  is  in  north- 
eastern Pennsylvania  a  few  months  previous 
to  and  during  the  suspension  of  the  anthracite 
mine  workers  in  the  Spring  of  1906.  The  causes 
and  the  effects  of  the  battle  between  the  giants — 
Capitalism  and  Labor-unionism — are  so  dis- 
cussed, that  in  the  warp  of  a  stirring  story  is 
woven  the  woof  of  some  of  the  best  ideas  on  the 
labor  problem,  advanced  by  some  of  the  brain- 
iest men — radical  and  conservative  on  both 
sides — without  destroying  the  interest  in  the 
narrative. 

Readers  not  familiar  with  those  coal  regions 
may  consider  some  of  the  scenes  overdrawn,  but 
we  think  not.  The  prayer  in  the  saloon;  the 
refugee  daughter  sleeping  on  the  grave  of  her 
parent;  the  death  of  Mrs.  Morgan  and  her  new 
born  babe,  and  many  other  incidents  are  not 
fiction  but  cold  facts. 

The  growth  of  that  part  of  the  state,  from 
rural  districts  to  thriving  centers  of  industry, 
has  been  rapid;  a  period  to  be  spanned  by  a 
lifetime  as  told  in  the  tale.  The  players  in  the 
game  are  the  saints  and  the  sinners  who  go  to 
and  fro  in  the  earth — the  only  two  divisions  of 
the  human  kind  since  the  days  of  Adam,  or  ever 
will  be,  for  that  matter,  so  long  as  this  old  world 
shall  be  the  arena. 


We  hope  that  the  readers  of  this  volume  will 
not  only  be  interested  but  also  inspired  to  play 
the  fast  game  of  life  fairly  and  without  prejudice, 
and  to  use  the  Golden  Rule  as  the  authoritative 
law  of  the  game.  We  have  tried  to  point  out 
the  way  to  win  and  the  way  to  lose,  ever  keeping 
in  mind  that : 

"There  is  so  much  bad  in  the  best  of  us, 
There  is  so  much  good  in  the  worst  of  us, 
That  it  hardly  becomes  any  of  us 
To  talk  about  the  rest  of  us." 

K.  P. 


CHAPTER    I 

THE    ANTHRACITE 

"Another  bumper,  Tom.  It's  not  time  to 
play  quits  yet."  Richard  Morgan  carelessly 
leaned  against  the  bar  of  The  Anthracite  saloon, 
his  head  beclouded  in  smoke  from  a  half  burned 
cigar  that  he  held  tightly  between  his  teeth, 
and  urged  his  companion  to  drink  with  him 
again.  "Come  on,  old  man;  it's  up  to  me  this 
time,"  he  continued  banteringly,  grinding  out 
his  words. 

"No,  Dick,  I  thank  ye." 

"Jest  this  one  on  me  fur  luck's  'ake." 

"I've  had  enough,  a'ready." 

"You,  enough?"  he  sneered.  "Who  ever  heard 
of  an  Irishman  gettin'  enough?  What  ye  think, 
gentlemen?" 

The  last  remark  was  directed  to  the  loafers 
who  sat  around  the  barroom  and  to  the  drinkers 
who  stood  at  the  bar.  They  all  broke  into  a 
loud  laugh  while  one  of  them  shouted  above 
the  din,  "You'd  better  set  'em  up  on  that,  Tom!" 

"Yes,  that's  it,"  laughed  Dick  as  he  crossed 
the  room  and  took  Tom  by  the  arm;  "I'll  set  'em 
up  now,  gents,  but  Tom'll  follow  suit." 

Chairs  rattled  and  banged,  heavy  shoes  scuffed 
across  the  sawdust  floor,  glasses  rang  over  the 
bar  and  husky  voices  broke  into  coarse  laughter, 


2  A  FAST  GAME 

senseless  profanity,  vulgar  jokes  or  ribald  con- 
versation, as  the  crowd  swung  round  for  the 
treat.  Dick  pulled  the  half  intoxicated  Tom 
to  his  feet,  flung  his  right  arm  about  Tom's  waist 
and  waltzed  the  helpless  fellow  across  the  room, 
singing  to  the  top  of  his  voice: 

"For  tonight  we'll  merry,  merry  be, 
For  tonight  we'll  merry,  merry  be, 
For  tonight  we'll  merry,  merry  be, 
Tomorrow  we'll  get  sober." 

In  spite  of  the  protest,  the  drinks  went  round 
and  Tom,  with  the  others,  drank  from  the  flowing 
bowl.  To  tell  the  truth,  it  was  just  what  his 
appetite  craved.  Unlike  Dick,  a  would-be  friend, 
he  could  drink  but  little  before  showing  visible 
signs  of  intoxication.  At  present,  he  rapidly  ap- 
proached the  state  of  maudlin  indifference  where 
to  drink  or  not  to  drink  meant  all  the  same  to 
him;  while,  on  the  other  hand,  Dick  had  but 
crossed  the  line  of  hilarious  carousing. 

"Now  it's  on  Tom,  boys,"  cried  Dick,  who 
produced  a  roll  of  bills  from  which  he  drew  one 
and  threw  it  toward  the  bartender;  then,  lifting 
a  mug  of  beer  high  above  his  mouth,  exclaimed, 
"Here's  lookin'  at  ye,  fellows,  and  here's  to  the 
health  o'  the  members  o'  the  Diamond  Union! 
Long  live  the  Union!" 

The  toast  ended,  the  room  resounded  with  the 
clink  of  glasses,  rim  to  rim,  the  gulping  of  strong 
liquors,  the  thump  of  many  a  heavy  glass  on 
the  heavier  oaken  bar  and  a  dozen  voices  shout- 
ing, "That's  the  article!"  while  the  many  steady 
and  unsteady  feet  shuffled  back  to  their  accus- 
tomed positions.  The  confusion  of  the  moment 


THE  ANTHRACITE  3 

had  drawn  attention  away  from  Tom,  who, 
leaning  against  the  bar,  declared  that  he  would 
buy  no  drinks  for  a  toast  in  favor  of  any  union 
on  the  face  of  the  earth. 

"Scab!"  cried  a  number  of  voices. 

"Call  me  what  ye  please,"  retorted  Tom, 
steadying  himself  by  holding  on  to  the  back  of 
a  chair,  "I'm  no  union  man  and  I'll  stay  by  my 
principles.  Every  man  has  a  right  to  'is  own 
opinions,  and  if  I  be  non-union,  why,  that's  my 
business,  an'  if  you  be  union,  why,  that's  your 
business.  Union  or  non-union,  I  don't  pay  for 
any  union  drinks,  and  that  settles  it." 

"Sure,  ye  will,  so,  Tom,"  put  in  Dick  as  he 
playfully  hauled  his  protesting  companion  back 
to  the  bar.  "Chuck  it  out  here  like  a  little  man." 
Then  waving  his  hand  at,  and  bowing  to,  the 
bartender,  he  continued,  "Mr.  Bartender,  allow 
me  to  introduce  ye  to  me  friend,  Mr.  Boland, 
who  will  now  chalk  up  fur  the  crowd  to  the  tune 
of  a  dollar  an'  a  half!" 

"And  I'll  do  nothing  of  the  kind  for  any  bloody 
union  in  Onaway — or  any  other  way,  so  help 
me  Shakespeare!" 

Two  individuals  in  the  rear  of  the  room  stole 
quietly  out  at  the  door.  Others  arose  and  cir- 
cled around  the  disputants.  Had  Tom  been 
sober  he  would  not  have  been  so  outspoken 
against  the  union.  Every  one  who  knew  him, 
however,  knew  equally  well  of  his  non-union 
tenets,  though  he  was  tolerated,  yes,  even  sought, 
by  union  men  on  account  of  his  genial  compan- 
ionship and  profligate  generosity.  Moreover, 
unionism  was  rapidly  rising  to  the  point  of  fever 


4  A  PAST  GAME 

heat  in  the  anthracite  coal  fields  of  northeastern 
Pennsylvania. 

The  lines  of  separation  between  capital  and 
labor,  union  and  non-union,  grew  tighter  daily. 
Dissatisfaction  floated  in  the  air.  The  mine 
owners  sniffed  it,  the  breaker  boys  inhaled  it 
with  the  clouds  of  coal  dust  that  rose  from  the 
chutes,  the  driver  boys  and  the  door  boys  heard 
it  in  the  rumbling  coal  cars  through  the  dark 
gangways,  the  bosses  saw  it  rising  in  the  bread- 
winner's barometer,  the  laborers  felt  it  in  the 
straining  social  timbers,  and  many  a  miner  lived 
on  it  for  a  steady  diet.  Ill  omens  hovered  over 
the  industrial  field  like  buzzards  over  a  field  of 
battle.  Onaway,  one  of  the  chief  cities  of  that 
region,  ebbed  and  flowed  with  the  tide  of  agita- 
tion and  dissaffection. 

"See  here,  Bolan',"  coarsely  interrupted  the 
bartender,  "shell  out!  We  don't  do  business 
on  tick." 

"Not  a  red  cent  fur  any  union!"  Tom  exclaimed 
unsteadily  shaking  his  purse  before  the  crowd. 

The  long  arm  of  the  dispenser  of  hell-fire  cuffed 
the  wallet  from  the  half  paralyzed  fingers  and 
sent  it  whirling  across  the  room.  One  of  the 
bystanders  instantly  picked  it  up  and  lay  it 
before  the  bartender  who  deliberately  emptied 
its  contents  out  upon  the  bar.  Counting  the 
money  rapidly  he  pushed  it  into  the  till  and 
flung  the  empty  pocketbook  back  at  its  owner 
exclaiming  with  an  oath,  "Take  yer  old  pouch 
an'  git  out  o'  here!  Ye  hain't  got  enough  to 
pay  yer  bills." 

"Gi-ive  me  back — my  money!  I  pay  for  no 
un — " 


THE  ANTHRACITE  S 

"Git,  I  say.  We  don't  want  old  bums  'round 
here." 

"I'm  jest  wat  ye  made  me.  For  two  days 
ye  wanted  me,  but  now  ye've  robbed — me  o'  my 
month's  pay,  and  drive  me — " 

The  last  words  were  lost  in  the  hum  of  many 
shouts  and  the  scuff  of  many  feet  as  the  inmates 
of  the  saloon  crowded  and  surged  around  the 
helpless  Tom  Boland.  The  bartender  had  al- 
ready started  for  the  unfortunate  victim  and 
was  shoving  his  way  through  the  crowd  to  throw 
the  delinquent  debtor  into  the  street,  when  the 
door  opened  and  in  walked  a  handsome  young 
man,  well  dressed,  well-bred  and  wearing  a  broad, 
good-natured  countenance.  The  rough  men  fell 
back  and  let  the  newcomer  approach  the  bar. 
His  quick  eye  took  in  the  situation  at  a  glance. 
Slapping  Tom  heavily  on  the  shoulder  he  ex- 
claimed in  a  round  jubilant  tone,  "Hello,  old 
sport!  Full  again  are  ye?" 

"Yes,  an'  he  won't  pay  'is  bill,  either,"  put 
in  the  bartender. 

"Oh,  never  mind  a  little  thing  like  that.  Tom's 
dead  broke,  I  guess,"  said  the  young  man.  "I'll 
pony  up  for  him  tonight."  Then  turning  to 
Tom  he  seized  his  coat  and  started  across  the 
room  waltzing  and  repeating: 

"Come,  and  trip  it  as  you  go, 
On  the  light  fantastic  toe." 

Poor  Tom's  legs  twisted  and  bent,  absolutely 
unmanageable.  But  the  strong  arms  of  his 
tormenter  held  him  up  and  forced  him  to  reel 
about  in  dizzy  circles  to  the  rending  of  every 
seam  in  his  coat  and  to  the  delight  of  the  on- 
lookers. In  three  minutes,  Tom  was  carelessly 


6  A  FAST  GAME 

flung  into  a  chair  in  the  corner,  hatless,  coatless, 
apparently    friendless,    and    his    shirt    sleeveless. 

He  no  sooner  struck  the  chair  than  he  at- 
tempted to  rise,  protesting  the  while,  "Lemme 
'lone,  er  I'll — " 

"No  you  wont,  Tom.  Saw  your  dad  down  in 
Nancy's  patch  a  little  while  ago  looking  for  you. 
He  had  a  jag  of  Green-Valley  Rye  on.  Better 
go  tell  him  his  wanderer  is  returning.  Go  home, 
Tommy,  to  your  daddy — to  old  Ras  Boland." 

The  speaker  took  the  barroom's  devotee  by 
the  bare  arm,  forced  him  to  the  open  door,  gently 
shoved  him  into  the  darkness  and  closed  the 
door.  Then  the  young  man  strode  toward  the 
bar,  saying,  "It's  on  me,  boys.  Come  up  and 
take  a  nip  of  the  o-be- joyful." 

The  heavy  phalanx  of  loafers  again  fell  to  with 
a  will  and  lined  up  along  the  bar;  some  were 
there  for  a  night's  carousal,  others,  sots  and 
chronic  spongers,  for  what  they  could  get  out 
of  an  occasional  treat.  Again  liquors  gurgled 
and  glasses  clinked  while  all  drank  to  the  health 
of  Edwin  Slocum. 

It  is  well  to  pause  a  moment  to  take  a  look 
at  the  man  who  acted  as  peacemaker  in  The 
Anthracite  when  it  was  about  to  enter  on  one  of 
its  familiar,  free-for-all  fights.  The  man  of  the 
hour  stood  six  foot  two  in  his  stocking  feet,  square 
built  and  well  proportioned.  The  left  corner 
of  his  large  mouth  slightly  drooped  and  an  un- 
steady cunning  twinkled  from  the  brown  eyes, 
otherwise,  Edwin  Slocum's  face  was  handsome. 
His  movements  were  graceful,  except  for  a  slight 
swagger  in  his  gait;  his  clothing  was  cut  from 
the  latest  pattern,  fitted  jauntily  and  hung 


THE  ANTHRACITE  7 

lightly,  except  for  the  hat  which  lopped  slouchily 
on  the  right  side  of  his  head;  his  language  was 
faultless,  except  its  admixture  with  slang  and 
obscenity;  the  whole  bearing  of  the  man  denoted 
a  cultured  gentleman,  percolated  with  alcohol 
and  impregnated  with  the  active  principles  of  a 
"tough."  He  came  from  one  of  the  best  families 
in  Onaway  and  had  received  a  diploma  from  one 
of  the  best  universities  in  the  land. 

Never,  in  any  sense  of  the  word,  had  he  known 
the  pleasure  of  toil  or  the  energizing  quality  of 
responsibility.  He  feathered  his  nest  with  home 
affections  and  parental  indulgence  and  floated 
at  ease  among  the  rich  and  poor  alike.  He  was 
equally  at  home  at  the  elite  balls  and  the  common 
dance,  the  excellent  clubs  and  the  questionable 
gangs,  the  gilded  saloons  and  the  vice-teeming 
dives;  everywhere,  in  fact,  that  he  cared  to  go  he 
was  hailed  with  delight,  simply  because  he  adapted 
himself  to  the  position  of  everyone  with  whom 
he  came  in  contact,  carried  a  well  filled  purse 
and  used  its  contents  generously. 

His  generosity  not  only  extended  to  the  widows 
and  orphans  and  common  people  in  general,  but 
just  as  lavishly  did  he  treat  the  boys  to  drinks, 
minors  or  otherwise,  and  the  habitual  drunkard 
who  had  spent  his  last  cent  for  drink  when  his 
family  needed  all  his  earnings  to  buy  the  actual 
necessities  of  life.  The  world  of  honor  lay  at 
Edwin's  feet  for  the  taking  but  he  had  chosen 
otherwise  and  had  become  deceitful  to  the  ex- 
treme and  desperately  conceited.  It  was  his 
boast  and  the  barroom  talk,  that  he  could  drink 
more  of  any  or  all  kinds  of  liquors  than  any  other 
man  in  the  city  without  being  visibly  affected 


8  A  FAST  GAME 

by  it.  It  is  not  surprising,  then,  that  the  "boys" 
rallied  round  the  young  man  of  twenty-four 
when  he  entered  the  precincts  of  The  Anthracite 
and  said  "Come!" 

"I  say,  fellows,"  cried  Slocum,  as  he  took  from 
his  pocket  a  roll  of  bills  and  nonchalantly  slid 
one  toward  the  bartender.  Then  he  deliber- 
ately lighted  a  cigar  and,  taking  a  half  dozen 
whiffs  from  it,  threw  the  match  into  a  cuspidor 
and  continued,  while  all  waited  to  hear  what 
their  oracle  would  say.  "My  policy  is,  that 
those  who  have  the  means  should  divide  them 
with  those  who  have  none.  I'm  a  socialist,  I 
guess,  boys.  Eh?" 

At  once  pandemonium  was  let  loose.  Cries 
of  "  'E's  the  man!"  "That's  nice  wark,  old 
man,  nice  wark!"  "That  hits  me!"  and  "Right 
ye  be!"  filled  the  stale  atmosphere.  One  old 
grizzled  miner  in  the  corner  shouted  above  the 
rest.  "If  aal  the  capitalis'  ware  like  young  Slo- 
cum we'd  'ave  no  use  fur  unions!" 

Ed  raised  his  hand  and  quiet  returned.  "No 
man  has  a  right  to  accumulate  wealth  by  keep- 
ing his  employes  working  at  starvation  wages 
any  more  than  a  lazy  lout  has  a  right  to  spend 
the  hard  earned  wages  of  an  honest  workman. 
You  laboring  men  are  bone  workers,  to  be  sure, 
but  'a  man's  a  man  for  a' 'that.'  '  More  shouts. 
"I  happen  to  have  the  cash — " 

"Who  guve  it  to  yez?"  piped  out  a  voice  from 
behind  the  screen  which  stood  before  the  door. 
A  hush  fell  on  the  listeners  while  a  slight  flush 
of  the  cheeks  expressed  inner  fires  of  an  otherwise 
cool  speaker. 


THE  ANTHRACITE  9 

"Yuse  be  slingin'  yer  dad's  mon,  and  no  thanks 
to  yez!" 

With  a  frown,  Mr.  Slocum  turned  to  the  bar- 
tender and  said,  "Can  not  a  gentleman  speak 
in  your  house  without  being  insulted?" 

The  man  addressed  made  for  the  door  but 
too  late  to  catch  the  bird.  Some  one  remarked 
that  it  was  Ras  Boland's  kid,  Ned,  who  had  made 
the  uncomplimentary  insinuation.  The  abrupt 
interrogation  had  done  its  work,  however,  for 
the  speech,  so  effectively  begun,  ended  in  the 
middle.  The  wind  no  longer  bellied  Ed  Slocum's 
oratorical  sails.  He  lay  becalmed.  Turning  to 
the  bartender  again,  he  ordered  him,  almost 
in  a  whisper,  to  call  up  the  boys.  While  the 
motly  company  circled  the  bar  and  drank  their 
several  potions  with  many  a  guttural,  "ahem!" 
and  many  a  satisfying  smack,  Slocum  took  Dick 
Morgan  by  the  arm  and,  winking  slyly  to  a  couple 
other  young  men,  led  the  way  to  the  side  door 
through  which  the  quartet  disappeared. 

In  ten  minutes  the  barroom  was  empty,  save 
of  the  vile  stench  of  intoxicating  odors,  the  stul- 
tifying fumes  of  nicotine,  and  the  spirits  which 
gormandize  on  the  souls  of  deluded  men.  Dark- 
ness of  midnight  and  the  stillness  of  the  grave- 
yard brooded  over  The  Anthracite,  but  a  bril- 
liantly lighted  and  closely  screened  apartment 
in  it,  from  whence  came  the  sound  of  tinkling 
glasses,  rollicking  laughter,  shuffling  tricks  and 
spat,  spat  of  cards,  told  all  too  true,  that  the 
game  of  life  and  death  had  yet  its  devotees, 
and  that  the  players  played  on  with  a  recklessness 
of  children  at  marbles.  Three  hours  passed 
and  the  nerve  of  three  of  the  revelers  could  no 


10  A  FAST  GAME 

longer  stand  the  strain.  The  ridicule  of  their 
leader  or  the  fascination  of  the  game  did  not 
arouse  their  waning  senses. 

The  stupid  sleep  of  the  carouser  put  the  luck- 
less trio  to  the  wall.  Ed  saw  the  situation  and 
with  a  smirking  smile  phoned  for  a  cab.  It 
was  but  a  matter  of  a  few  minutes  until  he  had 
the  three  on  their  way  home.  The  night  air 
and  the  jolting  conveyance  aroused  them  some- 
what, so  that  their  guardian  experienced  no 
difficulty  in  getting  them  safely  housed  in  their 
several  places  of  abode.  This  done  he  drove 
directly  to  his  own  home. 

At  one  of  the  most  palatial  residences  of  the 
city  the  cab  stopped.  Its  occupant  agilely  sprang 
to  the  curb,  strode  up  the  steps  like  a  giant  and 
applied  his  key.  The  heavy  door  responded  to 
the  touch,  opened  and  closed  behind  Eddie  Slo- 
cum — the  pride  of  a  mother's  heart  and  the 
cancer  of  a  father's — who  quietly  and  steadily 
ascended  the  oaken  stairway,  glided  to  his  elegant 
room,  disrobed  and  retired  to  slumber,  till  honest 
laborers  had  completed  half  their  day's  tasks 
and  God's  sun  had  passed  the  meridian. 


CHAPTER    II 

NAOMI 

Poor  Tom  Boland  stumbled  down  the  half 
dozen  steps  and  landed  against  a  telephone  pole 
across  the  sidewalk.  The  sudden  stop  not  only 
restored  his  equilibrium  but  also  set  his  mind 
working.  He  clung  to  the  pole  like  an  old  friend 
yet  with  no  more  tenacity  than  his  thoughts 
clung  to  the  wasted  years  of  his  checkered  life; 
wasted  because  he  had  yielded  to  selfish  appetite — 
the  possible  destiny  of  anyone  who  yields  to  it 
even  once — and  because  he  had  courted  the 
favor  of  companions  who  had  jilted  him  when 
his  money  was  spent  and  turned  him  into  the 
streets  at  the  mercy  of  the  law  and  the  lawless. 

There  was  no  influence  in  his  poverty  stricken 
home  to  help  him  to  reform.  The  police  station 
was  no  more  inviting.  To  sleep  in  the  gutter 
or  in  a  secluded  alley  held  out  no  inducement 
to  his  trembling  body,  and  as  far  as  his  maudlin 
memory  could  recall,  he  had  no  friend  who  cared 
a  straw  whether  he  was  ever  heard  of  again  or 
not.  Only  a  couple  of  blocks  further  down  the 
street  ran  the  river,  sulphurous  and  black  with 
mine  water  and  culm.  It  told  no  tales  and  covered 
many  woes.  Shoving  loose  from  the  pole  he 
staggered  down  toward  the  bridge. 

"Will  it  cover  my  woes?"  he  cogitated  as  he 
11 


12  A  FAST  GAME 

fetched  up  against  the  corner  of  a.  building  that 
projected  into  the  meandering  road  he  was  making. 

"Go-od!"  involuntarily  slipped  from  his  lips, 
expelled  by  the  abrupt  impact.  "Is  there  a 
God  who  cares  for  a  poor  devil  like  me?"  he 
thought  in  a  more  serious  vein  as  he  ricochetted 
on  down  the  sidewalk.  "  'F  there  is  a — is  a 
God  why  don't  'e  hike  'round  one  o'  his  saints 
to  give  a  duffer  like  me  a — a  boost  sky  i-" 

This  time  he  fetched  up  against  an  empty 
fish  stand  and  sprawled  all  over  the  slippery 
boards,  righted  at  last  and  leaned,  hugging  a 
post  of  the  fishmonger's  shed.  The  avenue 
was  silent  and  shadowy.  The  lights  were  haloed 
by  a  dense  fog  from  the  river.  The  night  was 
chill. 

"Br-r-r-rsh,"  chattered  the  solitary  pedestrian 
while  he  shivered  from  head  to  foot,  shaking 
the  post  and  rattling  the  warped  board  roof. 
"Who  said  'e  was  a  mershiful — God?  'Ere  's 
'e — 'e  bridge,"  he  muttered,  letting  go  his  hold 
and  shuffling  on  toward  the  fated  structure, 
into  the  iron  rods  of  which  he  slouched  like  a 
rag  blown  into  a  bush.  "Nobody '11  mish  Tom 
Bolan' — Mish-Mish  'Locum,  I-I  beg  yer  pardon." 
In  the  act  of  backing  through  the  meshes  of  the 
railing  he  recognized  the  face  of  Miss  Naomi 
Slocum  who  grasped  his  shoulder  and  firmly 
drew  him  back. 

"Somebody  will  miss  you,  Mr.  Boland,"  the 
young  woman  said  kindly.  "I  will  miss  you,  and, 
besides,  God  cares  for  you." 

"You  mish  me,  Mish  'Locum?" 

"Yes." 

"God  cares  fur  drunken  Tom  Bolan'?" 


NAOMI  13 

"He  gave  His  Son  for  just  such  men  as  you 
are." 

"Yes,  I've  heard  about  it,  but — but  'e  can't 
save  a  sot." 

"He  will  make  a  sober  man  of  you." 

"I  don't  want  'o  drink,  but  I  can't  help  it." 

"God  sent  His  Son  to  help  you." 

"Sent  you,  his  angel,  t'  'elp  me,"  answered 
Tom  who  made  an  awkward  attempt  to  doff  his 
hat  and  bow  to  his  savior,  in  the  mean  while 
tears  streamed  from  his  bloodshot  eyes. 

"Yes,  Mr.  Boland,  if  you  want  it  that  way. 
Come  with  me  and  I  will  help  you." 

"With  you,  Mish  'Locum?  No,  Tom'll  never 
disgrace  you  by  his  company.  Let  mis'ble  Tom 
Bolan'  go.  Thanks  fer  yer — yer  int'res  in  me. 
Goo-ood  night,  Mish  "Locum!" 

"No,  I'm  going  to  take  you  with  me,"  and  she 
put  her  arm  through  his  and  firmly  held  him 
as  they  slowly  staggered  together  across  the 
bridge.  At  the  other  end  she  hailed  a  passing 
cab  into  which  she  assisted  her  half  helpless 
companion.  No  cabman  in  the  city  of  Onaway — 
no  teamster  for  that  matter — ever  passed  by 
the  elegant  home  of  Naomi  Slocum  without 
breathing  a  prayer  for  her  protection  over  him 
as  fervently  as  any  Romanist  could  implore  the 
guidance  of  the  Blessed  Virgin.  "Home,"  she 
said  to  the  driver,  and  followed  Tom  into  the 
cab. 

Tom  protested,  apologized,  and  wept,  to  be 
left  alone  but  to  no  purpose.  "Promise  me 
one  thing,  Mr.  Boland,  if  you  want  to  be  a  sober 
man." 


14  A  FAST  GAME 

"O,  Mish  'Locum,  yes,  but  I'm  not  fit  'o  be 
in  yer  comp'ny  at  all  at  all." 

"You  are  not  to  say  any  word  till  I  tell  you 
to,  if  you  desire  to  be  a  sober  man  again.  Not 
another  word,  now.  I  will  care  for  you  and  you 
must  trust  me." 

Poor  Tom  groaned  and  sobbed  like  a  child. 
The  easy  roll  of  the  vehicle  over  the  asphalt  and 
the  soothing  words  of  his  friend  rapidly  quieted 
him  so  that  before  the  end  of  the  journey  was 
reached,  he  had  subsided  entirely  and  become 
perfectly  submissive  to  his  guardian.  When 
the  cab  stopped  at  her  door,  with  the  assistance 
of  the  driver,  Naomi  had  no  difficulty  in  taking 
Tom  up  the  steps,  through  the  door  and  up  the 
long  stairs  by  which  Edwin  Slocum  ascended 
to  his  room  several  hours  later. 

The  Hon.  Benjamin  Slocum  kept  no  boarding 
house  nor  was  his  home  open  to  the  public  as 
one  might  conclude  from  the  various  characters 
which  entered  by  his  front  door  at  such  unsea- 
sonable hours  of  the  night.  The  only  son,  of 
course,  must  be  allowed  admittance  at  any  time, 
and  the  same  privilege  must  be  granted  his  only 
daughter.  Naomi  Slocum  was  known  by  every 
one  in  the  city,  who  had  resided  there  for  any 
length  of  time,  and  everywhere  she  went,  the 
right  of  way  was  accorded  her.  Not  a  dissipated 
workman,  an  oily-tongued  debauchee  or  a  rough 
foreigner,  lived  in  the  city,  who  would  not  cease 
his  carousing,  his  profanity,  his  vulgarity  or  his 
fighting  at  the  approach  of  this  angel  of  peace; 
yes,  he  would  even  expose  his  life  if  the  slightest 
insult  should  be  offered  her  in  his  presence. 

Her  control  over  the  roughest  men  was  magical. 


NAOMI  15 

She  received  respect  alike  among  the  roughest 
element  in  the  slums  and  among  the  elite  of  the 
aristocratic  circles.  Not  only  was  she  safe  to 
walk  alone  along  the  darkest  and  most  danger- 
ous streets  of  the  city  but  her  very  presence  in 
the  haunts  of  vice,  like  Pippa  passing,  sheathed 
the  gleaming  stiletto,  smothered  the  passion  of 
the  sensualist  and  hushed  the  ribald  shout  of  the 
thoughtless.  The  purity  of  her  character  was 
like  sunshine,  never  out  of  place.  Darkness 
and  the  light  were  the  same  to  her  for: 
"He  that  has  light  within  his  own  clear  breast 
May  sit  i'  the  centre,  and  enjoy  bright  day: 
But  he  that  hides  a  dark  soui  and  foul  thoughts 
Benighted  walks  under  the  mid-day  sun; 
Himself  is  his  own  dungeon." 
Refreshed  by  the  same  dew,  drenched  by  the 
same  rain,  twisted  by  the  same  wind,  cheered  by 
the  same  sunshine  and  pinched  by  the  same 
frosts,  the  gariic  and  the  rose  grow  side  by  side, 
rooted  in  the  same  soil;  the  one  is  not  ugly  to 
look  upon,  its  flower  is  never  attractive,  its  odor 
is  offensive  and,  when  it  is  broken,  it  gives  out 
a  positive  stench,  and  its  taste  is  pungent  and 
acrid;  the  other  is  no  more  beautiful  in  appear- 
ance and  even  thorns  bristle  about  it,  the  blossom 
attracts  and  cheers,  its  fragrance  is  an  expansive 
cloud  of  drifting  delight,  and  its  taste  is  mild 
and  meditative.  Children  of  the  same  parents, 
reared  with  equal  care  and  advantages,  exposed 
to  similar  temptations  and  housed  by  the  same 
Christian  home,  Edwin  and  Naomi  Slocum  grew 
up  together;  the  one,  handsome  and  cultured, 
cunning  and  deceitful,  unscrupulous  and  sensual 
and  pickled  in  alcohol,  nicotine  and  vice;  the 


16  A  FAST  GAME 

other,  plain  and  refined,  frank  and  scrupulous, 
modest  and  thoughtful  and  saturated  with  char- 
ity, virtue  and  good  works  and  clothed  with 
garments  that  smelled  "of  myrrh,  and  aloes 
and  cassia,  out  of  the  ivory  palaces,  whereby  they 
have  made"  this  old  world  to  rejoice. 

Naomi  was  a  study  for  her  parents.  They 
urged  her  to  appear  more  in  aristocratic  social 
functions  as  well  as  to  entertain  others  in  like 
manner  but  her  tastes  were  rather  in  the  direction 
of  helping  the  needy  and  distressed  than  to  whirl 
in  formality  and  to  please  the  "fat  and  flourish- 
ing." When  an  allowance  was  received  from 
her  father  for  additions  to  her  wardrobe,  she 
invariably  used  the  half  or  less  on  herself  and 
spent  the  remainder  in  her  various  charitable 
enterprises.  But,  in  spite  of  this  peculiarity, 
her  mother  had  to  admit  that  her  daughter  never 
appeared  out  of  style  in  her  dress — always  a 
model  of  elegance  and  grace.  When  solicited 
to  invite  her  girl  associates  home  with  her  to 
spend  an  evening  or  night,  her  parents  were  often 
surprised  and  even  disgusted  to  have  her  bring 
home  with  her  one  of  the  worst  characters  in 
the  city — not  always  of  her  own  sex  either,  as 
shown  by  Tom  Boland's  admittance  under  the 
Slocum  roof. 

At  first,  they  protested,  then  tolerated  her 
acts  and  finally  congratulated  themselves  on 
having  such  a  daughter,  a  veritable  princess  of 
nobility.  Now,  at  the  age  of  twenty-two,  Naomi 
is  never  questioned  concerning  her  next  move 
nor  is  she  criticised  in  the  least  for  whomsoever 
she  brings  into  their  house,  at  whatever  time 
of  night  or  day,  or  in  whatever  condition  or  cir- 


NAOMI  17 

cumstances.  Never  yet,  has  she  taken  a  des- 
perate case  into  her  hands  that  she  has  not  re- 
formed it  and  accomplished  the  work  she  set 
out  to  do.  By  her  fruits  she  was  judged.  No 
one  ever  questioned  her  motive  where  ever  he 
found  her  or  with  whomsoever  she  associated 
for  the  time  being.  Like  a  low  drifting  cloud 
envelops  a  mountain  side,  obscuring  its  rugged- 
ness,  refreshing  its  verdure  and  passing  on  as 
pure  and  as  light  as  ever,  leaving  behind  a  trail 
of  itself,  tinted  with  a  sunburst;  so  Naomi  floated 
about  Onaway — an  angel  of  mercy — in  and  out 
the  homes  of  the  poorest  miners,  through  the 
wards  of  the  hospitals  and  the  disease  tainted 
patches,  alike,  visiting  the  saloon,  the  Salvation 
Army  and  the  cathedral,  Everywhere  she  went 
she  left  a  benediction  that  the  recipient  cherished 
more  and  more  with  the  advancing  years. 

The  place  of  the  morning  mist  that  hovered 
over  the  Lackawanna  had  been  taken  by  the 
flying  coal  dust  of  the  breakers  and  the  curling 
smoke  from  the  numerous  stacks  and  chimneys 
in  the  valley;  the  raw  edge  of  the  night  air  had 
been  tucked  under  and  folded  away  by  the  morn- 
ing sun;  and  the  silent  streets  had  long  resounded 
with  the  rattle  of  wheels  and  the  patter  of  hasten- 
ing footsteps,  when  Naomi  heard  the  first  stir 
in  the  room  where  she  had  left  the  besotted  Tom 
Boland.  She  immediately  phoned  to  her  pastor, 
Rev.  Henry  C.  Needman,  to  come.  The  clergy- 
man had  been  expecting  the  call  because  Naomi 
had  informed  him  of  the  circumstances  and  re- 
quested his  assistance  at  a  moment's  notice. 

Scarcely  had  the  receiver  of  the  telephone 
clicked  in  its  accustomed  hook  when  the  reverend 


18  A  FAST  GAME 

gentleman  entered  the  room.  Naomi  led  him 
to  the  door  and  the  two  went  in  where  Tom  was. 
He  sat  on  the  edge  of  the  bed  with  his  face  in 
his  hands.  His  drunken  stupor  had  left  him. 
One  could  read  his  thoughts  by  the  touseled 
hair  that  bristled  from  the  top  of  his  head  and 
hung  in  knots  through  his  finger  tips.  He  did 
not  raise  his  head  when  they  entered.  They 
stood  a  moment  and  gazed  in  pity  on  the  forlorn 
object  before  them.  In  the  silence  that  ensued 
tears  trickled  from  under  his  hands  and  dropped 
noiselessly  to  the  carpet.  The  fidgety  body 
began  rocking  to  and  fro.  A  shudder  passed 
over  it  and  an  agonizing  sob  revealed  the  des- 
perate struggle  going  on  in  a  drink  weakened 
brain  and  a  sin  blighted  soul. 

Naomi  lay  her  hand  on  his  shoulder  and  said 
kindly,  "Mr.  Boland,  we  are  here  to  help  you." 

With  a  scream  of  horror  he  leaped  for  the  door, 
shouting,  "Let  me  go,  this  is  worse  than  hell!" 

Mr.  Needman  blocked  the  way  by  putting  his 
arm  about  Tom.  The  frantic  man  clenched  his 
fist  and  drew  back  to  strike  his  benefactor,  at 
the  same  time  hissing  through  his  teeth,  "I  say, 
dominie,  let  me  go  or  I'll  knock — " 

Before  he  had  finished  his  threatening  sentence 
Naomi  grabbed  his  fist  in  both  her  own  hands 
and  said,  '  You  would  not  strike  a  friend,  would 
you?  Mr.  Needman  and  myself  are  here  to  aid 
you  to  be  the  man  you  would  like  to  be.  There 
is  a  friend  who  is  better  than  either  of  us  and 
who  will  help  you  to  reform." 

While  she  spoke  Tom  sank  to  the  floor  in  a 
quivering  heap  of  depraved  humanity.  "O,  Miss 
Slocum!  It's  too  late — too  late!" 


NAOMI  19 

"Never  too  late,  Tom,"  spoke  up  the  clergyman. 

"I'm  lost!     Let  me  go!" 

"If  Miss  Slocum  will  do  what  she  has  already 
done  for  you,  what  of  Jesus  Christ  who  gave 
His  life  for  you?" 

Instantly  he  lifted  his  head  and  exclaimed  in 
an  angry  tone,  "He  wouldn't  do  half  so  much  as 
Miss  Slocum  has." 

"Why,  Mr.  Boland,  you  must  not  talk  like  that. 
Yes,  He  will,"  broke  in  Naomi. 

"Why  ain't  'e  here,  then?"  petulantly  asked 
Tom. 

"I  hope  he  is — in  me.  I  do  this  for  his  sake 
''and  for  your  sake,  and  not  because  I  like  to  do 
it,  simply  for  the  doing's  sake;  and  yet,  I  would 
delight  to  see  you  a  happy,  clean  man  again." 

The  poor  fellow  had  quieted  down  and  sat 
on  the  floor,  erect,  and,  with  bloodshot  eyes, 
drank  in  every  word  Naomi  uttered.  She  paused 
a  moment.  His  head  dropped  in  shame. 

"It's  too  late,"  he  moaned. 

"O,  no,  Mr.  Boland.  If  you  believe  in  Jesus 
Christ,  and  Mr.  Needman  and  myself  pray  for 
you,  God,  our  Heavenly  Father,  will  send  the 
Holy  Spirit  who  will  take  away  your  appetite 
for  liquors." 

"He'll  have  to  be  a  different  dad  to  me  than 
old  Ras  Boland." 

Naomi  was  at  her  wit's  end  to  know  what  to 
say  at  this  unexpected  turn  of  Tom's  thought. 
Her  earthly  father  meant  almost  everything 
good  to  her;  to  Tom,  his  father  meant  everything 
bad.  Mr.  Needman  came  to  her  rescue. 

"Your  father  is  not  what  you  think  a  father 
ought  to  be,  is  he?" 


20  A  FAST  GAME 

"Not  by  a — not  by  any  means." 

"He  has  not  treated  you  as  you  think  he  ought 
to  treat  a  son,  has  he?" 

"Well,  I  should  say,  not." 

"Your  Heavenly  Father — " 

"Mine?"   interrupted  Tom. 

"Yes,  yours;  and  He  is  what  a  father  should 
be  and  so  loved  you  as  to  give  His  Son  for  you." 

"The  old  man  'd  give  me  away  quick  enough 
if  he  c'd  find  any  one  to  take  me." 

"He  has  already  given  you  away,  to  the  devil, 
and  you  have  accepted  him  as  your  father,  when 
you  lead  the  life  you  have  been  leading." 

"Guess  that's  no  joke." 

"Our  Heavenly  Father — " 

"Do  you  mean  ours,  Miss  Slocum?"  Tom 
interrupted  when  Naomi  attempted  to  explain 
more  fully. 

"Yes,  our  Father.  An  Almighty  Father  gave 
an  Almighty  Son  to  save  sinful,  imperfect  man." 

"You  don't  mean  to  class  yourself  with  me, 
Miss  Slocum?  You  are  way  off,  there." 

"That  is  just  what  I  mean." 

Tears  began  streaming  down  his  cheeks  as  he 
pathetically  put  his  question  of  doubt. 

"But,  Miss  Slocum,  I'm  not  fit  to  touch  such 
as  you  be;  you're  so  pure  and  good  and — " 
He  could  go  no  farther.  The  arrow  had  hit  his 
heart. 

"If  I  am  better  than  you,  Mr.  Boland,  it  is 
because  I  follow  God,  our  Heavenly  Father, 
while  you  follow  the  devil  as  your  chosen  father. 
We  follow  the  one  we  choose." 

"I    see!     Oh,    God,    help   me!"    he    exclaimed. 


NAOMI  21 

"Take  this  fire  out  o'  me;  it's  burning  me  to 
death!" 

"Will  you  promise  me  one  thing,  Mr.  Boland?" 

"Anything,  Miss  Slocum,  if  you  can  take  this 
furnace  out  o'  me,  and — and  the  guilt  and  the 
shame." 

"Then  you  will  remain  in  this  house  till  the 
appetite  is  gone  and  you  are  satisfied  that  your 
sins  are  forgiven." 

Never  was  there  a  more  dejected  object  than 
Tom  Boland.  A  night  of  drunken  sleep  after 
many  days  of  strenuous  debauch  will  make  the 
most  abstemious  of  men  an  object  of  pity, 
how  much  more  a  rough  careless  miner?  His 
clothing  scarcely  covered  his  body.  The  effects 
of  alcohol  were  passing  away,  leaving  him  ner- 
vous and  weak.  He  was  unkempt  from  head 
to  foot.  The  absence  of  soap  and  water,  and 
the  presence  of  tobacco  and  beer  and  dust  and 
tears,  made  a  combination  that  would  be  an 
excellent  object  lesson  for  all  youth  who  desire  to 
have  a  rounder  with  the  boys  just  for  the  fun  of  it. 
To  add  to  his  physical  and  external  miseries,  the 
poor  fellow's  moral  nature  was  in  a  cyclonic  whirl. 
Between  the  prayers  of  the  minister  of  the  Gospel 
and  the  faithful  Naomi,  he  begged  for  a  bracer 
to  steady  his  nerves.  The  afternoon  wore  away 
and  as  evening  shadows  crept  over  the  earth, 
intellectual  darkness  settled  over  the  drunkard. 

"That's  'o,  dominie,  but  don't  you  see  the 
little  devil?"  he  screamed.  "Hell's  tapped,  and 
they're  all  let  loose.  Yi-i-i!  Pull  'em  off!  E-e-e! 
O,  God!" 

"No,   Tom,   there  is  nothing  there.     You  are 


22  A  FAST  GAME 

among  friends.  No  one  can  harm  you  as  long  as 
you  remain  with  us." 

"O-o-o-o!"  he  shrieked  at  the  top  of  his  voice. 
"That  one's  long  's  me  crowbar  and  sneaking 
round  the  pillar  at  me.  Where's  a  sprag  to  fling 
at  the  cuss?"  feeling  for  something  to  throw. 
He  imagined  he  was  in  the  mine  and  that  serpents 
were  after  him  from  every  quarter.  Delirium 
tremens  had  him  in  its  strong  embrace.  Neither 
the  quietus  of  prayer  nor  the  Holy  Spirit  could 
operate  on  a  maddened  mind.  Tom  Boland 
raved  and  howled. 

"Some  more  of  Dick's  funny  business,"  said 
Dr.  Evan  Morgan,  who  had  been  summoned  and 
now  stood  before  the  patient,  watching  him  in 
his  demoniacal  maneuvers.  Naomi  had  not  been 
in  the  room  for  some  time  but,  at  the  approach 
of  the  doctor  and  on  overhearing  his  remark, 
she  hastened  to  his  side  and,  partly  to  herself 
and  partly  to  him,  said,  "I  surmise  that  my 
brother  had  as  much  to  do  with  this  case  as  your 
brother  had." 

"Too  true,  too  true,"  he  slowly  murmured, 
while  he  opened  his.  medicine  case  and  prepared 
to  deal  out  a  dose  of  chloral  hydrate. 

"He  needs  kind  treatment  and  indulgence 
more  than  anything  else.  You  administer  this 
first  dose  and  explain  to  him  that  he  is  among 
friends.  He  will  heed  more  of  your  advice  than 
one  would  naturally  think,  however  incoherent 
his  talk  or  violent  his  paroxysms." 

"The  gangway's  full  of  'em,  I  tell  ye!"  he 
shouted  as  Naomi  advanced  to  obey  the  physician, 
though  she  experienced  no  difficulty,  whatever, 
after  the  first  burst  of  passion.  In  a  few  minutes 


NAOMI  23 

he  was  left  in  charge  of  a  nurse  and  Mr.  Needman, 
and  before  midnight  Tom  slept  soundly,  to  awake 
in  the  morning  much  improved,  though  weak  and 
emaciated.  His  mind  cleared,  though  its  action 
was  more  like  that  of  a  child  than  that  of  a  man. 

The  emotional  nature  of  the  patient,  unrestrained 
by  the  exercise  of  sound  judgment  and  the  con- 
trolling influences  of  the  will,  effervesced  like  an 
individual  who  wavers  between  laughter  and 
weeping.  Tears  of  joy  and  tears  of  sorrow 
flowed  together  from  the  same  source — the  ebb 
and  flood  of  the  human  life — different  tides  of 
the  same  sea.  Gratitude  and  shame  surged 
through  poor  Tom's  imbeciled  manhood.  He  was 
unfit  for  conversation,  too  weak  to  work,  too 
nervous  to  think  and  too  exhausted  to  assist 
himself  at  all — a  helpless  wreck  drifting,  drifting, 
only  God  knew  whither.  The  game  had  reached 
a  pivotal  point. 

Absolute  quiet  and  patient  nursing,  however, 
repaired  his  spent  forces  so  rapidly  that  by  the 
third  day  he  was  able  to  walk  about  the  room. 
His  trials  had  just  begun.  With  the  return  of 
physical  strength,  came  also  the  furious  appetite 
for  drink;  and,  to  make  matters  worse  for  the 
moment,  conviction  of  sin  aroused  his  long  dormant 
spirit.  Yet  the  silver  lining  of  his  storm  cloud 
was  nearer  than  he  dreamed.  Had  not  the 
poignant  sin  pled  for  a  cure,  Tom  would  have 
gone  directly  to  the  saloon  to  quench  his  fiery 
thirst;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  had  it  not  been 
for  the  raging  thirst,  he  would  have  gone  home 
unsaved.  Between  the  two  fires,  and  he  scarcely 
knew  which  was  the  hotter,  he  waited  for  God 
to  open  a  way  of  escape.  That  way  had  already 


24  A  FAST  GAME 

opened  to  the  intended  suicide. 

At  the  end  of  five  days  his  mental  and  physical 
forces  had  so  far  recovered  their  normal  status, 
that,  by  the  aid  of  Mr.  Needman  and  Naomi,  his 
guides  and  intercessors,  Tom  grasped  the  secure 
cable  of  saving  faith.  That  evening  he  sat  at 
the  table  of  Benjamin  Slocum,  a  man  "clothed 
and  in  his  right  mind." 

At  the  opposite  side  of  the  table  sat  Ed  Slocum, 
gracious,  genial,  genteel.  No  one  questioned 
Tom's  right  at  the  family  board,  for  he  was  there 
as  Naomi's  guest  and  as  such  he  was  treated  by 
the  other  members  of  the  household.  His  presence 
in  the  house  had  been  known  since  the  morning 
of  his  first  day  there.  He  had  occupied  one  of 
the  many  rooms  in  the  mansion  and  had  received 
every  attention  needful  for  his  speedy  recovery. 
Although  Naomi  was  the  only  member  ,of  the 
family,  who  directed  the  care  of  the  patient  and 
ordered  the  necessary  means  for  his  comfort, 
the  parents  had  a  sympathetic  interest  in  his 
ultimate  reformation;  the  son  had  none  whatever. 

Of  the  relation  existing  between  the  two  young 
men,  no  one  knew  so  well  as  they  themselves. 
Naomi  surmised,  her  father  had  his  misgivings, 
and  the  mother  would  not  have  believed  had 
she  been  told  the  whole  truth  concerning  them. 
How  often  we  dine  with  Dr.  Jekyll  and  never  once 
dream  that  Mr.  Hyde  is  present.  It  is  a  merciful 
providence  that  forbids  teacups  to  tell  whose 
lips  touch  their  rims.  To  the  casual  eye,  the 
circle  beneath  the  dining-room  electrolier  em- 
bodied a  picture  of  exhilarating  refreshment 
and  the  intellectual  harmony  of  kindred  spirits. 

But  what  of  the  true  picture  as  seen  by  the  eye 


NAOMI  25 

"that  neither  slumbers  nor  sleeps?"  Now  we 
know  in  part  but  there  will  come  a  day  when  we 
shall  not  only  know  as  we  are  known  but  we  shall 
be  known  as  we  are.  The  divine  X-ray  will  reveal 
all  the  panoramic  misunderstandings  and  deceits 
which  are  behind  the  screen  of  life,  flood  with 
light  the  secrecies  of  the  human  heart,  and  pene- 
trate the  far  reaching  vistas  of  human  conscious- 
ness. Our  bump  of  curiosity  will  be  fully  sat- 
isfied, for  we  shall  become  cognizant  of  every- 
body else's  business;  the  phrenological  protuber- 
ance of  secretiveness  will  pass  to  the  state  of 
annihilation,  for  all  the  precious  scraps  of  knowl- 
edge and  diminutive  deeds  which  we  have  so 
deftly  covered  from  mortal  vision,  will  become 
the  subject  of  public  gossip  unless,  perchance,  we 
are  so  fortunate  as  to  reach  that  felicitous  realm 
where  gossips  never  come. 

"I  say,  Puss,  I'm  going  down  to  the  Salvation 
Army  barracks  with  you  tonight,"  soberly  sand- 
wiched in  Ed,  while  he  sipped  his  tea  and  squinted 
at  the  vapor  that  curled  from  its  surface.  "You 
will  have  no  objections  to  spending  an  hour 
there  with  us,  will  you,  Tom?"  he  went  on,  ad- 
dressing himself  to  the  only  guest  at  the  table. 
The  speaker  knew  from  past  experiences  and 
moral  certainties  that  his  sister  intended  to  take 
Tom  to  that  place  of  holy  resort  though  she  had 
not  so  much  as  intimated  such  a  thing  to  him. 

"Not  in  the  least,"  replied  Tom,  blushing  and 
shifting  awkwardly  on  his  chair. 

"We  will  be  glad  to  have  you  accompany  us," 
pleasantly  answered  Naomi.  She  had  often  in- 
vited her  brother  to  go  with  her  but  he  had  as 
often  refused.  That  he  should  now  offer  his 


26  A  FAST  GAME 

companionship  surprised  her,  to  say  the  least; 
yet,  without  displaying  the  slightest  astonishment, 
she  had  replied  to  him  in  her  ever  sweet  constancy. 
No  one  knew  her  brother  better  than  she,  and, 
even  then,  she  knew  not  whether  he  was  in  jest 
or  in  earnest. 

The  hour  came,  however,  and  the  three  set 
out  together  for  the  place  of  worship.  Naomi 
felt  perfectly  at  ease  in  the  plain  surroundings, 
so  also  did  her  brother,  except  that  he  took  no 
active  part  in  the  service,  though  he  listened  in- 
tently and  behaved  reverently.  Not  so  with  Tom. 
He  had  seldom,  if  ever,  been  in  a  place  of  worship 
before.  His  other  brothers  had  been  trained,  to 
a  limited  extent,  in  the  forms  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  church,  but  he  had  been  too  obdurate 
and  too  fond  of  his  immoral  practices  to  receive 
even  that  much  spiritual  discipline.  He  twisted 
restlessly  and  squirmed  in  his  pew.as  if  contorted 
by  pain.  So  persistent  and  active  was  he  in 
his  physical  antics  that  Ed  once  overstepped  the 
bounds  of  propriety,  and,  in  an  opportune  moment, 
whispered  in  his  ear,  "Tom,  if  you  don't  stop  your 
corkscrewing  around  so,  the  captain  will  be  down 
here  after  you;  he'll  think  you  have  a  jag  on." 

The  warning  passed  unheeded,  in  fact,  unheard. 
Tom's  ears  heard  things  which  stirred  him  in 
other  than  physical  directions.  His  soul  feasted 
on  the  well  creamed  milk  of  the  Gospel,  heard 
spiritual  strains  of  ravishing  music  and  experienced 
ecstatic  emotions  beyond  the  utterance  of  human 
tongue,  all  of  which,  fell  on  the  cultured  sensi- 
bilities of  Ed  Slocum,  un tasted,  unheard  and 
unfelt.  As  the  interest  increased  and  the  personal 
testimonies  dropped  from  lips  which  had  been 


NAOMI  27 

fired  by  the  divine  coal,  Tom  chaffed  like  a  leashed 
lion.  Involuntarily  he  clenched  his  hands  and 
stiffened  his  muscles,  uttering  audible  grunts  of 
acquiescence  and  approval,  whenever  his  senti- 
ments were  expressed  by  someone  else.  But 
mere  acquiescence  would  never  satisfy  Tom's 
excessive  nature.  He,  too,  had  a  story  to  tell. 

Though  unaccustomed  to  speak  in  public,  ex- 
cept in  the  barroom,  and  then  under  the  influence 
of  poor  whiskey  and  sour  beer,  he  could  keep  his 
silence  no  longer,  and,  springing  to  his  feet, 
under  the  influence  of  the  new  wine  of  the  Gospel, 
broke  out  with,  "Fellow  citizens,  you  all  know 
Tom  Boland.  Well,  he's  dead;  died  last  night  at 
sunset  and  I  hope  the  devil  will  give  'im  a  good 
funeral  for  he's  worked  for  him  twenty-three 
years  and  never  lost  a  day.  But  a  baby  was 
born  to  take  'is  place.  I  am  that  baby  or,  as 
you  might  say,  child.  I  don't  know  anything 
about  Bible  things,  but  I'm  going  to  learn  'em 
like  a  kid.  My  friends  tell  me  that  I'm  saved. 
I  don't  know  about  that,  but  I'm  dead  sure  I'm 
another  chap.  If  that  be  what  it  is  to  be  saved, 
it's  a  mighty  good  thing  and  I'm  going  to  freeze 
on  to  it  forever.  Never  fear  Tom  Boland  any 
more  for  the  devil  will  look  out  for  'is  chumps, 
but  the  kid,  what  was  left  in  his  place,  wants 
your  nursing  and  some  day,  when  he's  grown 
big  enough,  come  around  to  the  christening,  so 
help  me  God." 

By  the  time  Tom  finished  his  testimony,  the 
congregation  grew  uproarious  with  amens  and 
halleluiahs,  while  one  old  saint,  in  a  lusty  voice, 
started  in  singing: 


28  A  FAST  GAME 

"Halleluiah!  'tis  done;  I  believe  on  the  Son, 
I  am  saved  by  the  blood  of  the  Crucified  One." 
On  the  steps  of  the  barracks  Tom  said  "Good- 
night," to  his  friends.  Ed,  however,  volunteered 
to  accompany  him  home,  much  to  Naomi's  sur- 
prise and  even  her  suspicion.  Her  confidence  in 
Tom's  intentions  to  keep  out  of  the  way  of  tempta- 
tion exceeded  her  faith  in  her  brother's  motives 
in  his  offer  to  walk  home  with  Tom.  But  what 
could  she  do  or  say?  She  had  too  much  common 
sense  to  even  attempt  to  thwart  her  brother's 
plan,  especially  when  it  appeared  to  be  the  general 
exercise  of  friendship.  Quietly  favoring  the  idea 
with  a  pleasant,  "That  will  be  nice,"  she  bade 
them  good-night,  breathed  a  prayer  for  each  and 
hurried  off  toward  home  alone. 

No  sooner  were  the  boys  away  from  her  presence 
than  Ed  drew  a  couple  of  cigars  from  his  pocket 
and  fraternally  held  them  out  to  Tom,  saying 
in  his  warmest  vein  and  in  the  old  time  congenial 
manner,  "Have  one,  Tom?" 

In  the  old  time  way  and  from  the  force  of  habit, 
Tom  took  the  proffered  fuel.  Biting  off  the  end 
of  the  cigar  and  holding  it  between  his  teeth 
he  reached  into  his  vest  pocket  to  get  a  match. 
There  was  no  match  there.  His  changed  position 
dawned  upon  him.  The  debt  of  gratitude  which 
he  owed  to  Naomi  for  the  very  clothes  he  wore, 
as  well  as  for  the  existing  pleasure  in  his  own 
consciousness,  appeared  before  him  like  a  sum 
impossible  to  be  paid,  and  yet,  he  felt  that  he 
must,  at  least,  make  the  attempt  to  pay  it.  The 
taste  aroused  the  old  appetite,  but  he  firmly  took 
the  tobacco  from  his  mouth  and  earnestly  replied 
to  Ed,  who  then  held  out  a  match  to  his  compan- 


NAOMI  29 

ion,  "Why,  Ed,  I'm  not  going  to  smoke  any  more." 
"That  so?"  easily  answered  Ed  as  he  threw 
away  the  half  burnt  match  and  puffed  several 
clouds  of  smoke  which  drifted  gently  around 
Tom's  face.  "Well,  I'm  sorry.  You'll  miss  many 
a  happy  hour  writh  the  boys.  You  know  we  all 
burn  the  weed." 

"Yes,  that's  so,  too;  never  thought  of  it  before." 
By  this  time  they  had  reached  The  Anthracite. 
"You  will  surely  come  in  and  take  something 
with  me,"  indifferently  suggested  the  tempter. 
The  ease  of  expression  and  the  cunning  insinua- 
tion stabbed  Tom  like  a  dagger.  Then,  too,  Ed 
was  a  voluntary  companion  accompanying  him 
home.  Tom  had  received  many  treats  from  him 
already,  and,  for  the  past  week,  he  had  had  every 
kindness  from  his  family.  Ought  he  not  to  drink 
with  Ed  as  a  matter  of  courtesy  if  nothing  more? 
He  was  on  the  point  of  yielding  when  he  attempted 
to  reconcile  the  character  and  generosity  of  his 
companion  with  that  of  Naomi's,  in  fact,  the 
whole  influence  of  her  home.  Would  it  be  the 
square  thing  for  him  to  place  himself  in  the  danger- 
ous position  from  which  he  had  so  recently  been 
rescued?  Who  was  the  true  benefactor,  the  one 
who  generously  led  him  into  temptation  or  the 
one  who  so  unselfishly  led  him  away  from  it,  yes, 
saved  him  from  self-destruction?  But  more  than 
that,  even,  the  generosity  of  the  one  had  made 
the  other  necessary,  while,  if  Ed  and  his  influences 
had  left  him  alone,  there  would  have  been  no  need 
of  the  expense  and  anxiety  he  had  been  to  Naomi 
and  her  parents. 

"These  two  influences  are  opposites;  at  least, 
I  cannot  see  them  in  any  other  light,"  he  cogitated 


30  A  FAST  GAME 

as  he  stood  at  the  saloon  door.  While  these 
thoughts  flew  through  his  inflammable  brain  the 
two,  arm  in  arm,  had  ascended  the  very  steps 
which,  only  a  week  before,  Tom  had  descended, 
almost  helpless,  alone  and  friendless,  pushed  out 
by  the  same  hand  which  now  led  him  in.  Till 
then  Tom  had  not  spoken.  Ed  had  already 
pushed  the  saloon  door  open  from  which  the 
barroom  fumes  struck  Tom  full  in  the  face  like  a 
hot  blast  from  hell.  All  the  old  thirst  returned, 
augmented  a  hundred  fold,  and  fought  like  a 
lioness  on  an  enemy  that  would  steal  away  her 
young.  Another  crisis  had  come.  Would  he 
yield  or  would  he  conquer?  Would  he  win  for 
satisfaction  or  lose  the  game? 

"I  can't,  Ed,"  he  meekly  replied.  "You'll  use 
me  just  the  same  as  you  did  the  last  time  we 
were  in  there  together." 

"Well,  Tom,  I  would  be  either  a  man  or  a 
granny.  Take  your  choice.  It  is  immaterial  to 
me." 

"O-o!"  groaned  Tom  as  the  barroom  odors  filled 
his  lungs.  "If  it's  come  to  this,  granny  and 
God  or  man  and  the  devil,  I'll  be  a  granny  with 
God.  I'm  going  to  cut  it  out." 

Tom  was  already  on  the  sidewalk  inflating  his 
lungs  with  heaven's  elixir.  Ed,  still  holding  open 
the  door,  calmly  called  down  to  his  recent  com- 
panion, "Guess  I'll  go  no  farther  with  you  this 
time.  Good-night!" 

"Good-night!"  answered  Tom  as  he  hurried 
away  up  the  street  while  the  saloon  door  closed 
behind  his  generous  friend. 


CHAPTER    III 

THE    BLACK    DIAMOND    COMPANY 

"Good-morning,  Mr.  Slocum!" 

"Good-morning,  Ransom!  Did  you  bring  over 
the  plans  with  you?" 

"Yes,  sir!  'Ere  they  be."  The  speaker  briskly 
stepped  forward  and  spread  out  a  roll  of  blue 
prints  on  the  desk  before  Mr.  Henry  Slocum,  the 
president  of  The  Black  Diamond  Company.  The 
plans  in  question  were  for  a  new  breaker  to  be 
erected  for  that  company. 

"Do  the  prints  seem  to  be  what  we  want?" 

"Yes,  sir,  Mr.  Slocum,  the  harchitect  'as  gone 
according  to  my  hinstructions.  They  be  hall 
right." 

"Very  well,  then;  that  job  is  off  our  hands. 
When  father  and  Ben  come  in  we  will  be  ready  to 
make  arrangements  to  advertise  for  bids." 

"Then  your  father  's  hable  to  be  out  hagain, 
his  'e?"  A  scowl  passed  over  the  face  of  the 
speaker  though  no  trace  of  it  could  be  heard  in 
the  tone  of  his  voice.  "There's  one  thing  hi'd 
like  to  speak  habout,  while  we're  halone,  hif 
you  'ave  no  hobjections,  Mr.  Slocum." 

'"Certainly.  You  are  at  liberty  to  say  any- 
thing you  please." 

"Thank  you,  Mr.  Slocum.  Hit  concerns  the 
letting  of  the  contract.  You  know  my  son,  John, 

31 


32  A  FAST  GAME 

hof  course;  hand  you  know  'im  to  be  'andy  with 
men  has  well  as  with  mechanics.  'Is  hexperi- 
ence  as  houtside  foreman  han'  the  many  repairs 
made  on  the  hold  breaker,  hamply  qualifies  'im 
to  build  a  new  breaker.  Why  not  let  'im  'ave 
the  contract  without  the  hexpense  hand  delay  of 
hadvertising?  'E  can  do  the  work  cheaper  than 
hanyone  else,  hand  besides,  you  know  'e  doos  'is 
work  well.  'E  don't  want  to  force  'imself  on  you 
hin  the  least.  'E's  modest  hand  would  not  men- 
tion this  matter  to  you  but  'e'd  happreciate  the 
honor  has  well  as  the  responsibility  conferred 
hon  'im." 

John  Ransom,  Sr.,  had  been  mine  superintendent 
for  The  Black  Diamond  Company  ever  since  its 
incorporation.  There  was  nothing  in  coal  mine 
or  the  history  of  mines,  scarcely,  that  was  not 
familiar  to  him.  He  had  spent  his  early  life  in 
the  mines  of  Cornwall,  England.  When  oppor- 
tunities of  farther  advancement  and  increased 
wages  offered  in  America,  to  America  he  came, 
shifted  about  for  a  few  months  and  finally  settled 
down  with  the  people  of  Onaway.  His  ambition 
and  knowledge  soon  attracted  the  attention  of 
his  present  employers  who  offered  him  an  ad- 
vanced position  and  an  increase  in  wages.  He 
accepted,  of  course.  In  all  matters  relative  to  the 
mines  he  was  called  into  consultation,  and,  as 
might  be  expected,  his  opinions  had  weight  with 
the  company.  This  explains  his  presence  in  the 
office  on  this  particular  morning  mentioned  at  the 
opening  of  this  chapter. 

"Why,  Ransom,  I  have  no  objection  to  the 
scheme.  We'll  bring  the  matter  up  before  the 
other  members  of  the  firm." 


THE  BLACK  DIAMOND  COMPANY  33 

"Thank  you,  Mr.  Slocum.  That's  hall  can  be 
hexpected.  But  you'll  press  'is  claim  has  much 
as  possible  for  a  man  'olding  the  position  you 
'old?  Being  you  hare  president  hof  the  company 
your  word  will  'ave  great  weight.  You  halways 
'ave  been  a  man  of  hinfluence,  heven  before  you 
was  president  of  the  company." 

"We'll  look  into  the  matter  when  father  comes," 
indifferently  answered  Henry  Slocum  as  he  con- 
tinued his  writing. 

Ransom  fidgeted  about  the  room  as  if  dis- 
satisfied with  the  answer  he  had  received.  Glanc- 
ing out  of  the  window  he  saw  the  Slocum  auto- 
mobile approaching,  occupied  by  Hiram  Slocum 
and  his  son,  Benjamin.  He  realized  the  fact  that, 
if  he  received  a  more  definite  promise  from  the 
older  son,  he  had  but  a  moment  to  do  it.  Step- 
ping up  a  little  closer  to  the  desk  he  urged  his 
son's  claim  again. 

"Then  you  hare  willing  to  'ave  my  son,  John, 
take  the  contract?  The  reason  hi  be  so  hanxious 
about  the  matter  his  that  your  father  may  hop- 
pose  me,  my  son,  hi  mean.  'E's  not  your  father's 
pet  by  hany  means;  for  what  reason,  hi  know 
not.  Your  persuasion,  no  doubt,  will  keep  your 
father's  prejudices  from  hinjuring  the  business." 

"I  don't  think  father  has  prejudices  and  especi- 
ally any  that  will  hurt  the  business  of  the  firm  or 
any  honest  man,  for  that  matter,"  answered  Mr. 
Slocum  as  if  a  trifle  irritated  by  the  insinuation 
of  his  employe. 

"Hi  didn't  mean  that,  sir,  that  his,  just  that 
way.  Your  fath — " 

The  elevator  had  stopped  and  the  office  door 
opened.  The  word  was  cut  in  two  by  the  entrance 


34  A  FAST  GAME 

of  Benjamin  who  walked  directly  through  the 
waiting-room,  into  the  private  office  beyond  the 
second  room.  The  office  of  The  Black  Diamond 
Company  comprised  a  suite  of  three  rooms  on  the 
fourth  floor  of  the  Exchange  building.  Each 
apartment  had  an  entrance  opening  to  the  corri- 
dor;.only  the  door  of  the  largest  room,  however, 
allowed  admission  to  the  general  public.  In  that 
room  a  desk,  a  center  table  and  a  half  dozen 
chairs  comprised  the  furniture;  the  central  roomj 
or  general  office,  contained  two  desks,  a  high, 
double  combination  table  and  desk,  a  typewriter 
and  its  necessary  equipment;  while  the  private 
room  was  more  of  a  library  than  anything  else. 
The  furnishing  throughout  was  rich,  plain,  com- 
plete. 

Mr.  Ransom  stood  in  the  archway  between  the 
first  two  rooms  when  Benjamin  entered.  While 
he  crossed  the  floor  the  firm  pounding  of  a  cane 
on  the  marble  corridor  sounded  nearer  and 
nearer  and  ended  in  a  muffled  thump — thump 
on  the  heavy  rugs  in  the  office.  An  alert,  six 
foot  figure  sprightly  walked  into  the  room.  The 
shoulders  were  slightly  bent  and  the  legs  slightly 
bowed,  just  enough  to  suggest  a  well  braced 
physique.  The  hands  were  large  and  bony  and 
the  sharp  face  shone  like  a  solitary  cloud  at  sunset. 
The  eyes  twinkled  and  overflowed  with  good 
nature  and  penetration  so  that  one  was  often 
in  doubt  as  to  whether  the  penetration  meant  a 
Krag-Jorgensen  bullet  to  take  life,  or  an  antiseptic 
probe  to  save  life.  A  silk  tile  covered  a  shock  of 
long,  snow-white  hair.  A  fringe  of  whiskers  of 
the  same  color  protected  the  throat  from  ear  to 
ear. 


THE  BLACK  DIAMOND  COMPANY  35 

The  figure  stood  dressed  in  a  suit  of  black — a 
prince  Albert,  unbuttoned  and  slightly  sagging 
forward,  the  vest  half  unbuttoned  from  the  top 
and  the  pantaloons,  an  inch  too  long,  forming 
conventional  creases  over  the  instep  of  flat,  sub- 
stantial feet  that  roamed  at  large  in  a  pair  of 
number  ten,  common-sense  shoes. 

Such  was  the  appearance  of  Hiram  Slocum — 
Old  Uncle  Hi  Slocum  as  the  people  affectionately 
called  him — an  octogenarian  Yankee  of  the  first 
water,  the  senior  member  of  The  Black  Diamond 
Company.  The  other  members  of  the  firm  were 
his  two  sons;  Henry,  the  president  and  older  son; 
and  Benjamin  whom  the  father  loved  none  the 
less  for  being  married.  This  family  trio  owned 
and  operated  one  of  the  largest  independent 
anthracite  mines  in  the  Lackawanna  valley. 
"The  boys,"  as  uncle  Hiram  called  his  sons, 
figured  in  the  board-of-trade  circle  as  among  the 
strongest  and  most  honorable  business  men  in 
Onaway. 

Yet,  with  all  their  mental  acumen  and  com- 
mercial independence,  they  never  took  an  im- 
portant step  without  first  consulting  the  father 
whose  decision  always  went  without  question. 
Not  that  the  father  ever  tyrannized  or  ruled 
arbitrarily  for  he  was  no  autocrat.  There  is  no 
question  but  that  the  old  gentleman  always 
had  his  own  way.  However,  he  made  that  way 
so  plausible  and  bright  with  kindness  and  common 
sense  sagacity  that  every  conscientious  individual 
gladly  followed  the  patriarch's  leadership;  but 
woe  to  the  pretender  who  attempted  to  practice 
any  craftiness  on  him,  or  to  the  incipient  wise 
one  who  volunteered  to  instruct  him  in  religious, 


36  A  FAST  GAME 

ethical  or  commercial  lore!  "It  were  better 
for  that  man  that  he  had  not  been  born." 

For  the  last  decade  Hiram  Slocum  had  taken 
no  responsibility  in  the  active  operations  of  the 
company,  merely  a  silent  partner,  yet  that 
silence  furnished  the  dynamics  to  run  the  indus- 
trial interests  of  the  trio.  He  came  to  the  office 
as  often  as  he  pleased,  at  any  time  he  pleased, 
did  what  he  pleased,  remained  as  long  as  he 
pleased,  and,  when  gone,  stayed  away  as  long  as 
he  pleased.  He  had  no  business  hours  and  held 
no  business  relations  that  appeared  in  the  least 
onerous  to  him.  Regularity  marked  his  physical 
exercise  and  habits  though  the  responsibility  and 
routine  duties  of  the  business  in  general  he  shifted 
on  to  the  broad  intellectual  shoulders  of  his  sons. 
Yet,  withal,  their  burdens  weighed  so  lightly  that 
no  jar  or  friction  ever  retarded  the  corporate 
machinery;  the  whole  system  glided  along  noise- 
lessly, lubricated  by  the  sweet  spirit  and  judicious 
touch  of  the  master  mind. 

The  sons  held  their  father  in  unaffected  venera- 
tion; on  the  other  hand,  the  father's  relation  to 
the  sons  embellished  a  treatment  of  dignified 
simplicity  and  paternal  affection.  These  were 
the  composite  factors  of  The  Black  Diamond 
Company.  The  concrete  influence  of  the  com- 
pany on  the  commercial  world  was  that  of  sterling 
integrity  and  "a  square  deal"  to  every  customer. 

At  the  typewriter  near  one  of  the  windows  sat 
Evaline  Morgan — blooming  sixteen — the  stenog- 
rapher of  the  firm,  a  girl  who  heard  everything 
intended  for  her  ears  and  recorded  the  same 
neatly  and  accurately,  and  who  was  deaf  to  per- 
sonal concerns — a  veritable  typewriter,  a  machine 


THE  BLACK  DIAMOND  COMPANY  37 

which  gossiped  no  facts,  much  less,  the  stock  in 
trade  of  the  ordinary  tattler.  Eva  was  the  pet 
of  the  Morgan  family  because  she  happened  to  be 
the  youngest;  that  is,  Thomas,  her  twin  brother, 
claimed  seniority  and  Eva  never  secured  the 
evidence  to  prove  a  negation  to  his  claim. 

"Good-mornin',  John!  Fine  monrin'?"  with  a 
full  tone  on  the  final  in. 

"Good-morning,  Huncle  'Iram.  Yes,  sir;  hit's 
a  fine  day.  Hi'm  glad  to  see  you  hout  again." 

"Yes,  haf  to  dig  out  on  fine  days,  you  know, 
like  a  woodchuck  in  March,"  cheerfully  answered 
the  old  gentleman  as  he  stood  his  cane  in  the 
corner. 

"Let  me  take  your  overcoat,  father,"  said 
Benajmin,  coming  from  the  private  office  and 
assisting  his  father  to  remove  the  garment  named. 
"Thought  I'd  come  down  and  see  that  you 
boys  didn't  play  any  o'  yer  shennannigans.  We're 
in  snucks,  ye  know,  and  I  haf  to  look  after  things  a 
leetle'" 

Now  of  the  three  boys  alluded  to,  Benjamin 
was  the  youngest  and  he  past  his  forty-seventh 
year;  the  other  two  had  passed  the  half  century 
line. 

Up  to  this  time  his  remarks  had  been  directed 
to  John  Ransom,  Sr.,  whom  he  had  not  seen  for 
several  days.  He  had  conversed  with  Henry  at 
the  breakfast  table,  for  the  bachelor  son  made  his 
home  with  his  father;  he  had  chatted  with  his 
younger  son  on  their  way  down  to  the  office.  The 
old  man  now  walked  over  to  his  accustomed  chair, 
smiling  at  the  youthful  typewriter  and  saying, 
"Good-mornin',  Evaline.  You  look  as  pink  's  a 
Maiden  Blush  apple." 


38  A  FAST  GAME 

The  girl  visibly  reddened  with  pleasure  and 
answered  his  kind  morning  saiutation  in  evident 
reverence  and  delight.  She  loved  the  grand  old 
millionaire  because  he  never  passed  her  without 
a  respectful  greeting. 

The  blue  prints  were  examined  thoroughly; 
the  elevations,  excavations,  masonry,  timbering, 
carpentering,  power  and  machinery — all  taken 
into  careful  consideration.  The  breaker  would 
receive  the  coal  from  a  double  shaft  three  hundred 
feet  away,  for  the  law  requires  all  new  breakers 
to  be  constructed  not  less  than  two  hundred  feet 
from  the  shaft,  and  not  less  than  one  hundred 
feet  from  the  nest  of  boilers  which  is  used  to 
generate  the  steam  for  the  plant.  Formerly,  one 
would  as  often  find  breakers  built  directly  over 
the  shaft  as  away  from  them;  only  a  few  of  the 
old  style  yet  remain.  The  separation  of  the  two 
is  easily  understood  to  be  a  safety  in  case  of  fire, 
either  in  the  mine  or  in  the  breaker. 

The  company  and  its  superintendent  soon 
agreed  that  the  plans  and  specifications  were 
what  they  desired,  after  which  the  matter  of 
advertising  for  bids  came  up.  Henry  laid  the  case 
of  John  Ransom,  Jr.,  before  his  father  and  brother. 
They  raised  no  objection  and  the  outside  foreman 
was  immediately  summoned  by  phone  to  come 
to  the  office.  The  gentleman  soon  appeared  and 
the  consultation  began. 

"Yes,  sir!"  said  John  Ransom,  Jr.,  "I  desire  to 
express  my  appreciation  and  gratitude  for  your 
personal  consideration  and  unanimous  request 
that  I  meet  with  you  for  the  purpose  of  consulting 
concerning — a — the  feasibility  of  constructing  a 
breaker  according  to  the  architectural  drawings 


THE  BLACK  DIAMOND  COMPANY  39 

before  you — a — and  I  to  give  my  personal  super- 
vision to  the  construction  of  the  same,  and,  I 
may  add,  that  I  hope  an  entirely  satisfactory 
agreement  may  be  consummated  between  us 
whereby  mutual  benefit  shall  be  attained;  econ- 
omy and  facility  to  be  your  proper  remuneration, 
and  an  equitable  compensation  to  be  rendered 
for  my  services." 

"O,  I  see!"  said  Uncle  Hiram,  "you  want  the 
job  an'  a  fair  price  fur  doin'  it?" 

"A — yes,  sir,  Mr.  Slocum,"  turning  to  the 
venerable  questioner.  "Pardon  me,  if  I  am  am- 
biguous in  my  expression — a — and  construct  my 
statements  without  perfect  perspicuity.  My  in- 
tentions are  to  make  myself  easily  comprehended." 

"I  understand  that  you  have  figured  on  the 
plans,"  put  in  Benjamin.  "What  is  your  bid?" 

"Yes,  sir,  I  carefully  computed  all  the  necessary 
expense  and  labor,  everything  furnished  and  per- 
formed in  first-class  condition,  as  prescribed  in 
the  detailed  specifications,  and  I  have  succeeded 
in  reducing  my  proposal  to  the  minimum  estima- 
tion of  one  hundred  and  fifteen  thousand,  four 
hundred  and  fifty-three  dollars." 

"Can't  ye  throw  off  the  three  dollars?"  suggested 
the  senior  member  of  the  firm. 

"It  would  be  impossible,  Mr.  Slocum,  and  retain 
a  fair  and  equitable  consideration  for  my  personal 
promotion  and — and  supervision  component  on 
so  arduous  duty  and — and  obligation  as  well  as 
the  considerable  investment  of  one  in  so  humble 
circumstances  as  I — " 

"It's  all  hunky,  Johnnie.  I  jest  thought  the  three 
dollars  might  come  handy  to  me  fur  change." 

"After  due  consideration,  I  will  waive  the  three 


40  A  FAST  GAME 

dollars  and  reduce  the  entire  amount  to  the  even 
fifty.  I  have  thoroughly  and — and  accurately 
determined  each  minute  and — and  composite — " 

"You're  the  chap,  Jonnie,  but  I  think  the  job  a 
leetle  more'n  you  ken  muckle." 

Henry  knew  what  his  father  meant  and  half 
paralyzed  by  the  audacity  of  the  bidder,  dismissed 
the  father  and  son  with  the  assurance  that  the 
proposal  would  receive  their  immediate  attention. 

"Very  well,  Mr.  Slocum,  thank  you!  Of  course 
you  understand  that  this  bid  cannot  be  considered 
of  long  duration  on  account  of  the  almost  continu- 
ous advance  of  all  constructive  materials,  both 
in  wood  and  metals.  Good-day,  gentlemen!" 

The  old  man  chuckled  to  himself  when  the  door 
closed  behind  the  loquacious  contractor.  "Well, 
boys,  I  pity  the  chap,"  he  said,  "but  it  wont  help 
'im  to  give  'im  the  contract,  an'  I'm  sure  I'd  like 
to  have  a  leetle  chink  left  after  the  contractor  's 
paid.  Mebby  he  ain't  a  scalawag  but  he's  a 
mighty  poor  carculator.  A  leetle  pinch  o'  common 
sense  would  trim  'im  up  wonderfully.  Guess 
about  ninety  thousand  would  cover  the  cost, 
wouldn't  it,  Ben?" 

"Just  about,  I  should  say,  father,"  answered 
Ben  as  he  began  dictating  an  advertisement. 
"The  bids  will  be  coming  in,  in  less  than  a  week, 
and  in  the  meanwhile,  we  may  look  over  the 
specifications  more  closely  and  arrive  at  a  more 
definite  aggregate  of  the  cost.  Of  course,  we 
don't  mind  a  contractor  making  a  good  thing  out 
of  it  but  we  do  mind  being  bored  to  death  by  a 
platitudinarian. ' ' 

"That's  'o,  boys;  we'll  nab  the  man  ruther  than 
the  price  he  puts  on  the  contract.  Be  sure,  Eva, 


THE  BLACK  DIAMOND  COMPANY  41 

an'  don't  git  that  down,"  the  old  gentleman  play- 
fully remarked  to  the  girl  as  he  arose  and  started 
across  the  room  for  his  overcoat.  "Guess  I'll 
trudge  up  to  the  house,  Henry,  to  whet  up  an 
appetite  fur  dinner." 

The  elder  son  was  at  the  side  of  the  old  man 
with  his  overcoat,  giving  him  every  attention 
possible.  Adjusting  the  garment  to  the  powerful 
ftame,  Henry  walked  along  and  chatted  with  his 
father  until  they  had  descended  in  the  elevator 
and  the  senior  was  safely  on  his  way  up  the  street. 

Ten  days  later  the  second  meeting  of  the  mem- 
bers of  the  company  was  held,  this  time,  to  let 
the  contract  for  the  construction  of  the  Diamond 
breaker.  The  new  breaker  meant  more  than 
double  their  output  of  coal  for  they  intended  to 
keep  the  old  breaker  running  as  well  as  the  new. 
Tom  Boland  had  been  called  in  this  time  and 
within  ten  minutes  after  his  arrival  he  received 
the  contract  to  construct  the  building  for  the 
sum  of  ninety -five  thousand  dollars.  Other  bids 
had  been  less  but  the  oldest  member  of  the  firm 
had  nabbed  his  man  to  the  complete  satisfaction 
of  the  younger  members. 

"I  only  wish  he  had  put  on  a  few  more  thou- 
sand," feelingly  remarked  Uncle  Hiram,  when 
the  door  closed  behind  the  fortunate  contractor. 
"Ther's  a  good  'eal  in  'im  sense  'e  sobered  up. 
Wish  I  had  a  grandson  like — "  The  old  man 
caught  himself  but  too  late.  A  tear  stole  down 
the  wrinkled  face.  His  hand  trembled  as  he 
put  his  handkerchief  to  his  nose.  Realizing  that 
he  had  made  a  stinging  insinuation,  he  said  in 
almost  a  whisper  and  a  tone  full  of  pathos,  "It's 
not  your  fault,  Bennie.  It  may  be  mine  fur  I 


42  A  FAST  GAME 

once  had  an  appetite  fur  the  stuff.  It's  too  bad! 
Too  bad!  It's  an  awful  thing!  It's  the  very  old 
scratch,  himself!" 

Uncle  Hiram  had  not  noticed  the  burning  flush 
in  Henry's  cheek,  his  sudden  attack  of  coughing 
and  disappearance  into  the  private  office.  The 
game  was  waxing  wonderfully  pathetic  and  inter- 
esting to  the  three  players. 


CHAPTER    IV 

SUMMER   TIME 

Onaway  blistered  under  a  midsummer  sun. 
Clouds  of  coal  dust  drifted  away  from  the  many 
breakers  within  which  the  breaker  boys  laughed 
and  picked  slate  and  swore  and  fought  and  in- 
haled the  stifling  air  and  sweltered  in  the  humid 
heat.  Other  clouds  rose  from  the  air  pipes  through 
which  the  refuse  culm  was  forced  out  on  to  the 
dumps — miniature  mountains  that  disfigured  the 
hillsides  with  blackened  blotches;  and  still  others 
flew  wildly  through  the  streets  and  alleys  and 
suburban  patches,  driven  by  the  wind  into  many 
a  line  of  clothes  fresh  from  the  washtub,  into 
every  window  and  shutter  and  door  where  the"y 
coated  the  furniture,  the  carpets,  the  drygoods 
and  groceries  and  hardware  and  fruits  and  counters 
and  fixtures  with  a  veneering  of  downy  motes, 
spreading  their  charitable  folds  over  the  drooping 
grass  by  the  hissing  curbing  as  if  to  shut  off  some 
of  the  sun's  furnace  like  rays,  granulating  the 
figs  and  dates  and  oranges  and  bananas  and 
popcorn  and  peanuts  and  candies  at  the  fruit 
stands;  while  above  the  city  hung  the  aggrega- 
tion of  a  thousand  smokestacks,  a  great  sleeping 
monster  writhing  over  its  victim,  smothering  out 
the  sunlight  and  pressing  the  humidity  until  the 

43 


44  A  FAST  GAME 

city  limits  became  the  confines  of  a  suffocating 
incubator,  a  hatchery  of  ennui  and  dissipation 
and  disease  and  death.  Yes,  Onaway  lolled,  lay 
scorching  and  looking  heavenward  for  a  sign  of 
rain,  saw  only  its  own  sinuous  pall  through  which 
sifted  the  fiery  glitter  of  the  sun  while  the  indus- 
trial game  played  merrily  on. 

Long  before  the  sun  had  risen,  the  heavy  rumble 
of  the  beer  wagons  told  the  tired  denizens  that 
the  eye  that  never  slumbers  nor  sleeps  had  an 
opponent  equally  as  watchful.  In  the  aristo- 
cratic portions  of  the  city  many  homes  were 
closed  and  the  occupants  gone  to  the  country  or 
the  seashore;  in  homes  that  represented  less 
wealth,  fewer  shutters  were  closed  and  curtains 
drawn;  in  the  mining  and  foreign  sections,  in  the 
long  rows  of  company  houses,  sat  many  a  poor 
mother  holding  her  babe  to  her  breast,  longing 
for  rest  and  quiet,  and  many  another  who  scolded 
or  fretted  or  hurried  their  kitchen  work  or  slept 
off  the  effects  of  beer  drank  in  the  previous  night's 
revel. 

In  these  patches — a  cluster  of  houses  owned 
by  a  company  and  rented  to  its  employees,  named 
in  honor  of  some  notorious  character,  such  as 
Maffit's  patch,  Sweitzer's  patch  or  Bolinski's 
patch — squalor  and  misery  abounded,  and  here, 
too  often,  schemes  of  robbery  and  even  murder 
were  planned  and  sometimes  executed. 

Most  of  these  dwellings  snuggled  in  front  of  a 
little  garden  which  was  fenced  in  by  split  railroad 
ties  for  pickets,  and  faced  a  paveless  and  walkless 
street.  The  thoroughfare  was  mottled  by  ragged 
children,  quacking  ducks  and  honking  geese, 
scratching  hens  and  grunting  pigs,  barking  dogs 


SUMMER  TIME  45 

and  bleating  goats.  But  not  everything  and 
everybody  in  these  patches  were  bad.  Even 
if  a  member  of  the  Black  Hand  society  resided 
here,  his  next  door  neighbor  might  be  a  devout 
Christian.  Like  nearly  every  place  on  the  globe, 
the  good  and  the  bad  dwell  together. 

"And  so  you  leave  the  city  tomorrow,  do  you, 
Miss  Slocum?"  said  Mrs.  Boland  to  Naomi  who 
arose  to  take  her  leave.  The  young  lady  was  on 
one  of  her  characteristic  visiting  tours  before 
leaving  the  city  for  the  summer  home  of  the  Slo- 
cums.  The  sun  burned  low  in  the  west,  peeping 
over  the  mountains  like  the  red  eye  of  a  monster. 
When  the  girl  crossed  the  room  she  slipped  a  five 
dollar  note  into  Mrs.  Boland's  hand.  Contrary 
to  her  expectation  the  bill  was  refused  with  a 
smile,  a  thank  you  and  the  remark,  "No  more  of 
this,  Miss  Slocum.  My  man  is  as  bad  as  ever,  but 
since  Thomas  reformed  I  have  not  lacked  he 
necessaries  of  life,  and  once  in  a  while  I  think 
that  a  few  of  the  comforts  come  my  way.  I  can't 
tell  how  much  I  owe  you  for  helping  my  son  to 
become  a  man.  He's  an  awful  good  boy,  Tommy 
is,  and  has  the  making  of  a  man  in  him  and — 
oh,  Miss  Slocum,  if  you  only  knew!" 

The  woman  hid  her  face  in  her  apron  and  wept 
like  a  baby.  Naomi  put  her  arms  around  the 
sorrowing  one  and  tried  to  comfort  her  but  nothing 
seemed  to  console  her  in  the  least.  In  a  paroxysm 
of  grief  Mrs.  Boland  broke  out  again. 

"You  have  done  so  much  for  Thomas!  I  hope 
the  good  God  will  reward  you  in  the  next  world 
if  he  don't  do  it  here.  Oh,  if  you  only  knew!" 

While  she  spoke  a  tumult  drifted  up  the  street 
in  the  form  of  a  cloud  of  dust  which  hovered 


46  A  FAST  GAME 

over  a  score  of  boys  and  dogs,  circling  and  howling 
and  yelling  around  an  intoxicated  individual 
in  men's  clothing,  that  individual  lunging  from 
one  side  of  the  road  to  the  other,  now  after  a  boy 
who  had  pulled  his  clothing  or  yelled  at  him, 
and  now  after  a  dog  that  had  tried  its  teeth  on 
his  pantaloons;  the  unsteady  fellow  all  the  time 
cursing  at  the  top  of  his  voice  and  gesticulating, 
first  with  one  fist  and  then  with  the  other. 

"Here  comes  old  Ras  Bolan,'  full's  a  goat, 
ag'in!"  were  the  first  words  which  caught  the  ear 
of  Naomi. 

"Sic  'im  Tige!"  yelled  one. 

Another  youth  shouldered  a  stick,  pretend- 
ing it  to  be  a  gun,  and,  marching  just  out  of 
reach  of  the  enraged  man,  sang  out,  "Clear  the 
track!  Chief  p'lice  is  comin'!  Skin  out  the 
way  yuse  kids!  skin — "  The  words  suddenly 
ceased  as  the  youngster  dodged  a  right  hand 
swing  from  the  tormented  man. 

"Shy  out  a  bit,  Ted!"  shouted  another  who  had 
seen  the  impending  danger.  But  Ted  was  gone 
long  before  the  hand  could  reach  him.  The  stroke, 
however,  overbalanced  Boland  who  fetched  up 
in  a  heap  in  the  middle  of  the  street.  He  had 
stumbled  over  an  empty  powder  can  which  had 
been  slid  between  his  wobbling  legs. 

"Excuse  me,  Mr.  Rastus,"  soberly  shouted 
Ted  above  the  din  of  laughter  and  screams  of 
delight.  "Jest  come  'ere  an'  I'll  pick  yuse  up!" 

Among  the  hilarious  participants  in  this  scamp- 
ering group  trotted  a  Billy  goat — the  pet  of  the 
patch,  a  trained  wariorr,  a  disciplined  guard,  a 
veritable  battering  ram  of  the  olden  type.  No 
sooner  did  the  inebriate  sprawl  in  the  dust  than 


SUMMER  TIME  47 

he  attempted  to  rise.  Sitting  flat  in  the  middle 
of  the  road  he  began  hurling  stones  at  his  tor- 
mentors. This  defensive  maneuver  widened  the 
circle  between  him  and  his  assialants,  increased 
the  distance  to  be  traveled  by  the  missiles  and 
multiplied  a  thousand  fold  the  ribald  shouts, 
the  exquisite  delight  and  keen  satisfaction  of  the 
dancing  and  dodging  imps.  But  stones  grew 
scarce  and  other  tactics  had  to  be  resorted  to. 
Boland  rose  on  all  fours  and  was  about  to  straighten 
himself  to  a  standing  position  when  the  presence  of 
the  goat  in  the  midst  of  ther  ing,  suggested  a  happy 
thought  to  one  of  the  urchins. 

"Take  'im,  Billy!"  he  shouted.  The  obedient 
soldier  needed  no  second  command.  Then  came 
the  patter  of  cloven  hoofs,  and  a  streak  of  the 
hollow-horned  ruminant  of  the  genus  capra  shot 
across  the  intervening  opening.  A  terrific  impact 
followed  and  then  frequent  sickening  thuds.  An 
occasional  "Holy  Mither,  take — "  answered  by 
a  liquid  gutteural  "ba-ah;"  another,  "I'm  kilted, 
sur — ah!"  and  another  "ba-ah,"  came  from 
within  the  dust  cloud  of  war,  while  without, 
pandemonium  had  been  unroofed,  its  walls  leveled 
and  every  member  of  that  demoniacal  council 
had  scaled  the  ramparts  and  leaped  triumphantly 
into  the  fourteenth  heaven  of  santanic  ecstacy. 

In  as  much  as  every  battle  has  an  end,  both 
to  the  vanquisher  and  to  the  vanquished,  so  also 
did  the  fierce  combat  in  Maffit's  patch  have  a 
finish,  both  to  the  butted  and  to  the  rebutted. 
The  early  evening  breath  gently  bore  the  dust 
mist  down  the  street  and  revealed  the  results 
of  the  contest;  a  quivering  mass  of  human  flesh 
in  the  gutter  before  Erastus  Boland' s  door,  the 


48  A  FAST  GAME 

conquered;   a   goat,  a   dozen   yards   away,    com- 
placently chewing  the  label  off  an  empty  tomato 
can,  the    conquerer;    and  the    camp  followers,  a 
promiscuous  file  of  humanity  of  the  genus,  boy, 
marching    and   singing   with   tremendous    gusto, 
harmoniously  and  otherwise, 
"They  give  'im  up  fur  gone, 
'E's  lyin'  in  the  lane, 
And  ev'rybody  knows, 
The  old  man's  drunk  again.  Tiger!  Whoo-oo-oop!" 

Naomi  knelt  at  the  head  of  the  helpless  object 
in  the  gutter.  The  campfollowers  simply  evap- 
orated. Absolute  silence  reigned  except  from 
a  distant  home  where  a  weary  mother  crooned 
over  a  fretful  child,  and  from  the  droning  hum 
of  a  mine  fan  near  the  Northwest  breaker. 

"Lemme  be  er  Oi'll  guve  yez — "  the  sentence 
died  on  his  lips  for  he  had  caught  sight  of  Naomi's 
face. 

"May  I  assist  you  into  the  house?"  she  kindly 
inquired. 

"Furguve  me,  Miss.  Oi'm  not  fitten  to  ba 
teched  by  the  likes  o'  yez,"  the  man  answered, 
mumbling  out  his  apology  between  parched  and 
stained  lips,  and  on  a  breath  that  reeked  with 
the  odors  of  sour  beer,  adulterated  alcohol  and 
the  nicotine  of  third  grade  tobacco. 

"I  will  help  father  in,"  spoke  up  Tom  Boland 
who  touched  his  hat  to  Naomi  and  at  once  put 
his  arm  beneath  the  limp  form  of  the  man  and 
easily  hurried  him  up  the  half  dozen  steps  and 
into  the  house.  He  made  a  thorough  examina- 
tion of  the  parent  and  found  no  bones  broken  or 
dislocated. 

"Oh!   Miss  Slocum,  if  you  could  only  do  for 


SUMMER  TIME  49 

my  man  what  you've  done  for  my  son,  Tommy, 
I  would  have  the  happiest  home  in  the  city," 
wailed  poor  Mrs.  Boland.  Her  face  wore  a  pitiful 
expression,  was  haggered  and  scarred,  the  results 
of  pinching  poverty,  anxiety  and  abuse.  In  her 
youthful  days  Mrs.  Boland  had  been  the  blooming 
belle  of  the  Lackawanna  valley. 

"I  have  only  done  my  simple  duty,  Mrs.  Boland," 
answered  Naomi.  "God  has  done  all  the  good 
work,  and  is  able  to  do  greater  wonders  if  we  will 
only  trust  him.  But  I  want  you  to  come  up  to 
our  cottage  at  Chehocton  some  time  this  summer 
and  spend  a  few  days  with  me.  The  air  of  that 
high  ground  will  make  you  feel  like  a  new  person." 
Then  turning  to  Tom  she  continued,  "You  and 
Jennie  will  take  care  of  the  house  if  your  mother 
will  only  take  a  vacation,  won't  you?" 

"Certainly,"  responded  Tom  and  Jennie  in 
the  same  breath.  Now  Jennie  was  a  young 
woman  of  sixteen,  slattern  and  slouchy,  inherit- 
ing her  father's  physical  appearance  as  well  as 
his  careless  and  genial  disposition.  Until  Tom 
reformed,  the  mother  had  been  alone  to  stem  the 
tide  of  decency  and  morality.  But  what  could 
she  do  in  the  face  of  a  dissipated  husband  and 
two  sons,  a  daughter  like  Jennie,  and  two  younger 
sons  following  their  elders  into  the  haunts  of 
licentiousness  and  positive  wickedness?  Poor 
woman!  though  not  the  only  one  in  the  wide, 
wide  world,  who  has  drunk  bitter  dregs  from  the 
cup  of  an  ill  matched  marriage.  Yet,  withal, 
the  Boland  home  now  represented  luxury  as 
compared  with  the  poverty  of  six  months  before. 
Even  the  father  worked  steadier  and  went  on  his 
sprees  less  frequently. 


50  A  FAST  GAME 

"Oh,  I  couldn't  think  of  leaving  home  this 
summer;  something  might  happen  to  my  folks 
and  Tom — "  she  hesitated  and  sighed. 

"Never  fear  about  me,  mother ;  I  have  a  stronger 
helper  than  this  world  can  give,  who  will  keep 
me  sober  whether  you  are  here  or  not,',  instantly 
interrupted  Tom  who  had  divined  his  mother's 
thought  concerning  his  ability  to  resist  tempta- 
tion, should  it  come  to  him  when  there  was  no 
one  in  the  home  to  sympathize  with  him  or  say  a 
good  word  of  encouragement  to  him  once  in  a  while, 

"Yes,  I  know,  Tom,  but — " 

"She  has  no  excuse,  Miss  Slocum,"  answered 
Tom.  "She  will  be  up  to  Chehocton  some  day 
if  I  have  to  send  her  up  by  express." 

"Very  well,  then,  I  shall  anticipate  your  visit 
with  pleasure.  Good  night!" 

Darkness  had  covered  Onaway  when  Naomi 
stepped  into  the  street.  She  had  only  passed 
the  line  between  the  Boland  home  and  that  of 
the  next  neighbor  when  Tom  hurried  to  her  side 
saying,  "Pardon,  me,  but  I  think  I  ought  to  ac- 
company you  out  of  this  dangerous  place."  There 
was  but  one  sixteen-candle-power  lamp  in  the 
whole  row  of  houses  before  which  they  passed. 
Tom  knew  very  well  that  Naomi  never  feared, 
and  more  than  that,  that  she  was  perfectly  safe 
anywhere  in  the  city;  yet  he  posed  as  her  pro- 
tector for  an  excuse  to  be  in  her  company. 

"Thank  you,  Mr.  Boland,  I  am  quite  safe 
alone,  and  yet,  if  you  wish  and  have  the  time, 
I  will  be  delighted  to  have  you  walk  with  me; 
you  are  more  than  welcome.  I  really  wanted 
to  speak  with  you  privately  anyway,  and  I  am 
glad  that  the  privilege  has  come  so  opportune. 


SUMMER  TIME  51 

The  question  on  my  mind  was,  whether  or  not 
I  could  do  anything  for  your  father  in  the  morn- 
ing. I  would  be  willing  to  sacrifice  my  whole 
summer  vacation  to  be  of  permanent  benefit  to 
that  man.  He  needs  God  above  everything  else 
and,  possibly,  I  may  be  able  to  point  him  in  the 
right  direction.  What  do  you  think?" 

"You  are  able  to  help  him  if  any  one  on  earth 
is  able  and,  what  is  more,  he  has  more  confidence 
in  you  than  anyone  else  around  here  who  poses 
as  a  Christian.  But  don't  put  off  your  vacation 
on  his  account." 

"Now  is  the  time  to  help  him,  if  ever,  and  I 
want  to  be  in  the  field  when  the  harvest  is  ripe. 
I  simply  wanted  to  learn  his  attitude  toward  me 
in  order  to  determine  my  course  of  action.  That 
is  very  plain  to  me  now.  I  will  put  off  my  leave 
of  absence  indefinitely.  The  game  of  duty  is  of 
vastly  more  importance  than  pleasure,  you  know," 
she  said  in  unfeigned  delight. 

And  thus  the  two  walked  and  talked  on,  down 
the  west  side,  across  the  bridge  and  up  the  east 
side,  through  the  crowded  thoroughfares  and 
along  the  beautiful  avenues  where  only  an  occa- 
sional pedestrian  journeyed,  into  the  lights  and 
into  the  shadows.  Neither  manifested  any  fa- 
tigue, though  Tom  had  been  busy  at  the  Diamond 
breaker  since  six  in  the  morning,  while  Naomi 
had  already  traveled  miles  that  sultry  afternoon 
on  her  errands  of  mercy.  They  seemed  mutually 
agreed  to  practice  the  precept  in  the  old  adage, 
"The  farthest  way  around  is  the  surest  way  home." 

It  was  a  "midsummer-night's  dream"  to  Tom, 
a  repose  after  many  hours  of  concentrated  appli- 
cation to  numerous  details  and  vexatious  prob- 


52  A  FAST  GAME 

lems;  to  Naomi  it  was  a  pilgrimage  through  an 
orchard  of  blooming  Christian  graces  terminat- 
ing at  the  shrine  of  one  congenial  spirit.  How 
changed  were  the  circumstances  as  compared  with 
those  of  eight  months  previous  when  Naomi,  by 
her  virtue  and  kindly  help,  accompanied  and 
defended  through  the  same  streets  a  depraved 
character  that  now  stalked  at  her  side — a  man, 
dignified,  thoughtful,  clean,  courageous.  The 
contrast  provided  a  luscious  menu  for  their  mental 
and  moral  appetites,  to  mention  nothing  of  the 
gravitation  of  each  soul  toward  the  other,  in 
sympathy,  in  prospect  and  in  pleasure. 

The  next  morning  dawned,  a  duplicate  of  its 
predecessor.  Long  before  the  sun  had  flung  its 
golden  bars  on  the  dingy  walls  of  the  row  of 
company  houses,  the  hellish  rumble  of  the  beer 
wagons  re-echoed  down  through  Maffit's  patch, 
making  a  similitude  of  sound  like  unto  that  of 
the  groans  and  wails  of  the  miserable  ones,  united 
with  the  rattle  of  human  bones  along  the  cor- 
ridors of  a  hopeless  woe.  In  one  of  the  dwellings 
of  the  patch  a  victim  of  the  passing  juggernaut, 
writhed  in  the  grasp  of  delirium  and  the  fiery 
touch  of  fever.  All  night  Tom  had  stood  over 
him. 

The  physician,  too,  had  labored  the  greater 
part  of  the  morning  hours.  Daylight  brought 
a  white  capped  nurse.  Wearied  and  anxious 
Tom  went  to  work.  The  new  breaker  was  grow- 
ing rapidly,  and  its  contractor  was  meeting  every 
obligation;  but  prosperity  and  flattering  recog- 
nition among  shrewd  financiers  did  not  ease  the 
pain  of  Tom's  aching  heart.  To  have  a  father 
and  brothers,  who  lived  lives  of  sobriety  and 


SUMMER  TIME  53 

industry,  carried  more  weight  on  the  side  of  hap- 
piness and  genuine  progress  to  Tom  than  the 
accumulation  of  wealth  and  a  standing  among 
men  of  thought  and  action. 

On  the  way  to  his  place  of  toil  Tom  phoned  to 
Naomi  that  her  services  could  avail  nothing  while 
his  father  lay  in  his  present  condition  and,  what 
was  worse,  the  likelihood  of  his  ever  being  any 
better  was  a  question  of  doubt.  As  to  delaying 
her  departure  to  the  country  home  there  could 
be  no  valid  excuse.  "Go  today,  by  all  means; 
and  if  a  change  for  the  better  comes,  I  will  let 
you  know  immediately,"  he  said  finally. 

Tears  filled  the  eyes  of  Naomi  as  she  hung 
the  receiver  in  its  place.  Sadness  shadowed  her, 
not  because  of  her  desire  to  remain  in  the  city, 
but  because  of  the  sorrowing  home  in  Maffit's 
patch,  and  especially  for  the  member  of  that 
family  circle,  who  stood  at  the  other  end  of  the 
wire.  But  she  must  go.  She  wanted  to  go,  and 
fairly  flew  across  the  street  like  a  fairy  to  tell  her 
grandfather  that  she  would  be  ready  to  go  at 
ten-thirty  and  remain  with  him  as  his  companion 
so  long  as  he  wanted  her  to  remain.  Then  there 
was  a  beautiful  tableau  acted  behind  the  cur- 
tain— a  tableau  with  two  characters,  an  act  often 
repeated  and  never  wearied  of. 

The  girl's  slender  arm  stole  around  the  old 
man's  neck  while  her  graceful  figure  slid  over 
the  arm  of  the  chair  and  into  his  lap.  Youth's 
pale  cheek,  without  friction  or  guile,  cushioned 
itself  in  the  wrinkles  of  old  age.  Loving  fingers 
crept  through  the  long  gray  hair  and  smoothed 
out  the  tangles  in  the  collarette  of  whiskers.  A 
trembling  arm  twined  round  a  slender  waist  like 


54  A  FAST  GAME 

an  ivy  around  a  sapling.  December  and  May 
were  holding  a  love  feast.  From  the  eyes  of 
December,  fountains  of  pure  delight,  threadlike 
rivulets  zigzagged  down  through  the  wavering 
furrows,  the  sheen  of  which  danced  and  glimmered 
with  the  light  of  exquisite  emotion,  virtue,  sim- 
plicity and  genuine  American  royalty;  in  the 
eyes  of  May  no  showers  dripped,  only  the  refresh- 
ing and  sparkling  dew. 

The  grandfather  broke  the  silence  with,  "Well, 
Pleasant!" — he  preferred  the  English  word  as 
expressing  his  meaning  better  than  the  Hebrew 
word,  Naomi — "I  kinder  hankered  fur  you  as 
soon  as  I  found  out  you  couldn't  go  with  me. 
I'm  rael  glad  things  shaped  themselves  so's  you 
ken  go  along.  But  what  ails  my  leetle  chick 
this  mornin'?  She's  not  quite  so  frisky  's  she  is 
gen'lly." 

"Oh!  nothing  much,  grandpa;  only  there  is 
so  much  suffering  and  work  to  leave  behind  while 
I  take  my  ease  up  among  the  hills." 

"I  ken  keep  ye  trippin'  tendin'  me  if  that's  all 
ye  want,  and  I'm  sure  /  don't  suffer  so  much 
when  you're  skippin'  round  me." 

"It  is  not  that,  grandpa,  and  you  know  it.  You 
know  I  want  to  go  up  to  Chehocton,  and  nothing 
pleases  me  better  than  to  be  with  you,  but,  grand- 
pa, we'll  have  to  hustle  if  we  make  our  train,  and 
wouldn't  mama  be  disappointed  if  we  did  not 
get  up  there  to  dinner?" 

The  marble  brow  of  December  received  an 
audible  osculation  from  the  crimson  lips  of  May, 
there  was  a  rustle  of  skirts,  a  click  of  a  lock  on  a 
door  softly  closed,  and  an  old  man  sat  in  an  easy 
chair  meditating.  "How  much  like  ma  she  is, 


SUMMER  TIME  55 

and  what  a  sunbeam!  Poor  child,  don't  know 
much  o'  this  world  but  there's  no  better  in  it. 
Oh,  the  years  of  suffering  that  await  the  young!" 

The  shaggy  head  dropped  into  his  hand,  the 
elbow  of  which  rested  on  the  arm  of  the  chair,  the 
eyes  closed  and  youthful  days  came  trooping  back 
in  memory.  Naomi's  grandmother,  Naomi's  pro- 
totype in  beauty  of  form,  in  constancy  of  charac- 
ter and  in  sweetness  of  disposition,  stood  again 
at  his  side,  a  maiden,  coy  and  hopeful.  Hand 
in  hand  they  had  walked  for  two  score  years, 
sharing  each  other's  weal  or  woe,  triumph  or  trial, 
sunshine  or  shadow. 

For  another  score  of  years  he  had  walked  alone , 
alone  only  in  companionship,  however,  for  he  had 
a  model  dwelling  place,  two  devoted  sons  and  a 
loving  daughter  to  comfort  him  in  his  declining 
day.  But  the  sunset  would  not  be  without  its 
redness  of  cloud,  its  penciled  tints  and  its  antici- 
pation of  morning — a  morning  followed  by  an 
eternal  day.  No,  it  could  not  be  very  far  off, 
just  over  the  rim  of  life's  ocean.  He  already 
felt  the  ground-swell  as  he  neared  the  shoreline. 
Like  all  other  faithful  workmen,  he  had  nothing 
to  leave  behind  but  a  clean  record  and  unfinished 
tasks — tasks  that  other  hands  must  complete, 
other  souls  agonize  for. 

Youth's  kinetoscopic  pictures  were  sweeping 
across  the  screen  of  his  memory  with  such  vivid- 
ness and  reality  that  the  old  man  started  as  from 
a  wild  dream,  exclaiming,  "Yes,  Sarah  Ann!" — 
the  name  of  his  long  departed  helpmate — when 
Naomi  burst  into  the  room  saying,  "It  is  train 
time,  grandpa,  and  the  carriage  is  waiting." 
Thus  out  of  the  house  they  went,  chatting  and 


56  A  FAST  GAME 

joking  together,  the  gilr,  with  all  her  thought- 
fulness,  never  thinking  that,  for  the  moment  at 
least,  she  was  another  person  in  the  mind  of  the 
patriarch. 

Naomi's  home  was  closed  during  the  remainder 
of  the  summer.  Her  father  tarried  with  the 
family  at  the  cottage  when  business  permitted, 
and  while  in  the  city,  took  his  meals  with  Henry, 
whose  domestic  affairs  ran  on  as  usual  except 
for  the  vacancy  made  by  the  absent  father;  the 
elder  brother,  however,  occasionally  joined  the 
others  for  a  day  or  two  at  the  lake.  Ed  was 
somewhere,  no  one  knew  just  where;  the  auto- 
mobile and  chaffeur  were  gone  with  him,  as  he 
said,  for  the  White  Mountains. 

"We're  joggin'  along  a  leetle  more  sprightly 
than  I  did  the  first  time  I  went  over  this  road, 
Pleasant,"  the  grandfather  remarked  while  the 
carriage  rolled  quietly  over  the  hill  and  whirled 
round  the  north  shore  of  lake  Chehocton.  "I 
druve  an  ox  team  then  an'  rode  a  rickety  two 
wheeled  cart.  Things  has  changed  some,  I 
reckon;  all  except  that  old  nigger  head  rock  over 
there  by  that  clump  o'  brush."  The  old  man's 
eyes  flashed  as  he  pointed  toward  a  large  rock 
from  which  a  grand  prospect  stretched  away  to  the 
east,  miles  and  miles,  over  lake  and  river,  farm- 
land and  woodland,  mountains  and  valleys,  until 
the  distant  blue  sierra  dovetailed  its  craggy  cliffs 
and  piny  plumes  into  the  blue  sky. 

He  was  on  his  old  stamping  ground.  Sixty- 
five  years  before  he  had  ended  his  long  journey 
from  Sandy  Hook,  Connecticut,  to  this  wild  spot 
in  the  Beech  Woods — "out  west"  as  the  New 
Englanders  insisted  in  calling  the  wilderness  of 


SUMMER  TIME  57 

northeastern  Pennsylvania.  For  a  week  they 
had  traveled  slowly,  crossing  the  Hudson  river  at 
Newburg,  and  from  thence  over  the  Schwangum 
mountains  to  Port  Jervis  on  the  Delaware  river 
by  way  of  the  Newburg  turnpike — a  thoroughfare, 
in  those  days,  no  doubt,  more  like  the  "rocky 
road  to  Dublin."  They  continued  toward  the 
west  till  they  struck  the  Easton  and  Belmont 
turnpike — surely  a  misnomer  because  that  rough 
road  turns  neither  to  the  right  nor  to  the  left  for 
hill  or  valley,  as  may  be  seen  to  this  day  through 
many  places  of  Wayne  county. 

This  route  brought  them  to  their  destination 
from  the  south,  an  exceeding  roundabout  way  as 
may  be  seen  by  consulting  a  map  of  that  part  of 
the  old  Keystone  state.  Hungry  and  tired,  a  lad 
of  fifteen,  he  had  trudged  into  the  small  clearing 
at  the  outlet  of  the  lake  one  April  evening  and  the 
next  morning,  with  his  father  and  brothers,  began 
clearing  the  land  for  thier  new  home.  Only  a 
little  more  than  a  half  dozen  years  did  he  spend 
there,  however,  before  the  rest  of  his  family  re- 
turned to  their  native  village  and  he,  after  pros- 
pecting for  a  few  months,  settled  finally  in  Onaway, 
then  a  settlement  of  little  importance. 

Uncle  Hiram  Slocum  never  regretted  the  second 
move  although  he  always  had  a  warm  spot  in  his 
heart  for  Chehocton  lake  and  the  green  hills  which 
nestle  around  it;  partly  because  its  scenery  is 
beautiful  and  inviting  and  partly  because  he  there 
met  Miss  Sarah  Ann  Monroe  and  carried  her  away 
captive  to  his  lonely  log  cabin  on  the  banks  of  the 
Lackawanna.  Not  a  brook  or  a  bypath,  ravine 
or  rivulet,  dale  or  dingle,  ridge  or  rocky  run,  for 
miles  around  was  there  but  what  his  active  feet 


58  A  FAST  GAME 

had  tramped  or  trotted,  walked  or  waded  in  the 
seventh  decade  agone. 

There,  when  but  a  bungling  backwoods  boy  and 
on  that  old  familiar  rock  which  he  pointed  out  to 
Naomi,  he  had  wooed  of  a  Sunday  afternoon  his 
life's  companion,  and,  when  the  hill  tops  had 
been  dipped  in  sunset  amber  and  toned  down  to 
twilight  purple,  he  had  walked  home  with  her, 
hand  in  hand,  ambitious  for  mature  manhood, 
planning  the  ventures  of  coming  prosperity,  hold- 
ing in  check  the  possibilities  of  enduring  happi- 
ness, and,  in  the  glimmer  of  the  silver  crescent 
hanging  in  the  western  sky,  renewed  his  vow  of 
eternal  fidelity  and  bade  the  girl  good-night  at 
the  doorstep  of  her  father's  humble  dwellingplace. 

Today  their  journey  by  rail  had  been  hot  and 
dusty,  and  by  carriage,  breezy  and  exhilerating. 
When  the  happy  trio — grandfather,  granddaughter 
and  the  maid — alighted  from  the  carriage  their 
appetites  needed  no  tonics,  they  craved  just 
plain,  wholesome  food  and  plenty  of  it.  Dinner 
awaited  them,  a  country  dinner — homemade 
bread,  new  potatoes  and  green  peas,  spring  water 
and  fresh  milk,  and  a  shortcake  buried  beneath 
the  last  wild  strawberries  of  the  season — berries 
sprinkled  with  sugar  and  bathed  in  real  cream. 
To  add  to  the  pleasures  of  the  occasion  a  running 
fire  of  questions  and  answers  and  reminiscences 
played  across  the  table.  A  draft  of  air — ladened 
with  the  scent  of  a  hay  field  near  by  the  lake,  filtered 
through  the  wiry  trill  of  a  chippy  that  had  tucked 
itself  under  a  shady  branch  to  sing  its  midday 
song,  strained  through  the  shrill  stridulations  of  a 
harvest-bee  that  swung  to  and  fro  on  the  twig  of 
a  birch  tree — crept  noiselessly  up  the  bank  from 


SUMMER  TIME  59 

the  water,  turned  up  to  the  sun  the  under  side  of 
the  maple  and  beech  leaves,  swung  the  poplar 
leaves  like  a  pendulum  or  tilted  them  every  which 
way  as  if  to  inspect  their  peculiar  construction, 
breathed  heavily  through  the  fragrant  hemlock 
needles,  bowed  itself  gallantly  into  the  open  door 
and  window,  tossed  the  tablecloth  back  and  forth 
lifted  and  absorbed  the  vapor  from  the  old  man's 
teacup  and  died  away  in  his  snow  white  locks. 

But  the  dinner  hour,  like  all  pleasures,  has 
passed,  the  siesta  taken,  the  afternoon  worn  to 
shreds  and  the  shreds  wound  up  around  the  sun 
and  all  rolled  away  out  of  sight  behind  the  western 
hilltop.  All  is  silent  save  for  the  petulent  call  of 
the  whippoorwill  from  far  up  the  glen,  a  full  chorus 
of  frogs  that  held  grandstand  seats  around  the 
watery  arena  and  the  liquid  lapping  of  the  limpid 
wavelets  over  and  under  and  around  the  pebbles 
and  sticks  that  lay  scattered  along  the  sandy 
shore.  A  moonless,  cloudless  sky  looked  down 
on  Naomi,  rocking  lightly  in  her  boat.  She  had 
ceased  rowing  and  sat  meditating. 

The  trim  craft  drifted  and  grounded  and  swung 
round  to  port  at  the  mercy  of  the  elements;  the 
pilot  had  forsaken  the  wheel.  But  there  was  no 
danger.  One  oar  ground  in  the  sand  while  the 
other  swashed  harmlessly  at  the  side  of  the  skiff. 

And  what  of  the  thoughts  of  the  silent  sailor? 
They  started  after  the  wandering  automobilist 
who  raced  up  and  down  the  New  England  coast, 
over  its  macadamized  roads,  through  its  beautiful 
villages  and  towns,  on  the  boulevards  of  the  great 
cities  and  finally  halted  in  one  of  the  subways  of 
human  frailty  and  dissipation.  Her  mind  jumped 


60  A  FAST  GAME 

from  the  Atlantic  seaboard  to  the  sweltering  city 
of  Onaway. 

"Yes,"  she  whispered  to  herself,  "Dr.  Morgan  is 
somewhere  doing  good;  he  may  be  at  the  bedside 
of  a  mangled  miner  or  bedside  of  one  who  is  burn- 
ing with  fever,  or  prescribing  for  some  sufferer  in 
his  office  or  poring  over  his  books;  anyway,  he  is 
doing  good."  From  the  doctor  her  mind  flew  to 
a  miner's  home  where  a  miner  tossed  on  his  bed 
while  over  him  a  whitecapped  nurse  and  a  stalwart 
youth  in  his  shirtsleeves  bent  in  patience  and 
tenderness.  "Poor  Tom,  and  I  cannot  help 
him!"  was  all  that  escaped  her  lips. 

Naomi  awoke  from  her  reverie,  took  up  the 
oars  and  rowed  to  the  dock.  As  she  slowly  climbed 
the  bank  to  the  cottage  porch  there  came  from 
the  highway  across  the  lake  the  rich  voice  of  a 
belated  farmer  boy  cheerfully  singing,  "In  the 
good  old  summer  time." 


CHAPTER    V 

AN    ENEMY 

Day  by  day  the  Diamond  breaker  climbed 
cloud  ward  more  than  two  hundred  feet,  a  huge 
network  of  timbers  outlined  against  the  sky. 
The  heavy  timbering  neared  its  completion. 
Thomas  Boland  came  to  the  growing  structure 
one  morning,  as  was  his  custom,  a  few  minutes 
before  the  gang  of  men  began  work  in  order  to 
inspect  the  last  that  was  done  the  night  before 
and  see,  too,  that  everything  was  safe  and  correct 
to  continue.  As  he  climbed  the  dizzy  height, 
across  beams  and  up  temporary  ladders  which 
were  made  by  nailing  cleats  from  a  post  to  a 
false  stud,  he  noticed,  by  the  slanting  rays  of 
the  sun  yet  low  in  the  east,  a  small  sprinkling  of 
sawdust  on  one  of  the  cross  beams  as  if  it  had 
dropped  there  from  one  sawing  directly  above  it. 
His  curiosity  was  aroused  at  once. 

He  immediately  crawled  to  the  suspicious  place 
for  he  knew  well  that  no  saw  should  have  been 
used  there,  because  every  timber  and  brace  and 
pin  came  up  by  the  derrick  rope  and  rider,  framed 
perfectly  and  fitted  to  its  place  without  saw  or 
tool  of  any  kind,  save  the  pinch  bar  to  pry  the 
tenons  into  the  mortices  and  a  hammer  to  drive 
the  pins;  at  any  rate,  a  handsaw  was  the  last 

61 


62  A  FAST  GAME 

tool  needed  in  that  particular  place.  The  night 
had  been  without  wind  else  the  dust  would  have 
been  blown  away.  Tom  stood  over  the  telltale 
bits  and  looked  directly  overhead.  By  careful 
and  steady  inspection  and  to  his  surprise  and 
horror,  he  detected  the  cut  of  a  fine  handsaw 
where  it  had  nearly  severed  one  of  the  principal 
timbers. 

"It's  the  work  of  an  enemy,"  he  spoke  half 
audibly,  "and  he  means  my  ruin,  neither  does  he 
regard  the  lives  of  my  men." 

It  was  true  from  all  appearances  for,  had  he 
not  discovered  the  sawcut,  when  the  derricks 
began  to  work  and  men  stood  among  those  tim- 
bers, the  extra  strain  on  that  particular  stick 
would  break  the  little  of  it  left  and  precipitate 
the  derrick,  the  men  and  many  timbers  down 
through  the  lower  structure,  crashing,  breaking 
and  destroying  everything  in  its  course,  causing  a 
wreck  that  would  cost  thousands  of  dollars  to 
repair  to  say  nothing  of  the  possible  loss  of  life. 
But  Tom  drew  a  long  breath  when  he  realized 
that  he  could  repair  the  damage  in  a  day. 

He  considered  it  worth  a  day's  work  of  himself 
and  men  and  the  price  of  another  beam,  to  know 
that  he  had  an  enemy  mean  enough  to  perpetrate 
such  a  dastardly  deed.  The  watchful  contractor 
made  a  thorough  inspection  of  every  stick  of 
timber  in  the  massive  pile.  He  told  his  men 
what  he  had  found  and  warned  them  to  be  on 
their  guard  against  any  crooked  work  that  might 
be  done  in  the  future.  By  night  the  damage  had 
been  repaired  and  the  work  rested  just  where  it 
did  the  night  before.  Thereafter,  a  watchman 
remained  at  the  breaker  during  the  night.  Evi- 


AN  ENEMY  63 

dently,  two  could  play  at  that  game. 

While  the  work  went  busily  on  during  that  day 
of  repairing  Tom  studied  to  find  a  clew  of  the 
criminal.  Either,  one  who  worked  on  the  bents 
or  one  who  was  familiar  with  the  construction  of 
breakers,  had  sawed  the  timber,  for  no  greenhorn 
would  have  known  so  well  where  to  do  so  little 
and  have  it  count  for  so  much  resultant  damage. 
Tom  thought  that  he  had  no  enemies  in  the 
city,  at  least,  no  one  who  would  endanger  others' 
lives  rather  than  his  own,  for  he  seldom  worked 
on  the  building;  and  yet,  he  was  usually  in  the 
tops  when  the  day's  labor  began. 

That  fact,  too,  confirmed  his  opinion  that  some- 
one knowing  these  things  had,  either  lain  the 
plot,  or  was  a  confederate  with  someone  else,  or 
was  a  tool  for  another  intriguer.  While  thus 
cogitating,  and  at  the  same  time,  overseeing  the 
work,  he  noticed  that  one  of  the  men  on  the 
derrick  had  not  yet  come  out  on  duty — a  sullen, 
dark  skinned,  unprincipled,  kinky  haired,  disagree- 
able fellow  who  excelled  in  his  line  of  work  and 
who  went  by  the  name  of  "Curley." 

Tom  immediately  gave  a  passing  urchin  a  dime 
to  find  the  thirteen  year  old  Ned  Boland,  a  brother, 
and  send  him  up  to  the  breaker.  Ned  soon  put  in 
an  appearance  wondering  what  his  brother  wanted. 

"See  here,  Ned,"  said  Tom  when  the  boy  was 
near  him,  "get  some  buddy  of  yours  and  hunt  up 
Curley.  Go  down  to  Mrs.  Koninski's  old  boarding 
house  first  and  if  you  don't  find  him  there  go 
over  to  The  Anthracite  and  so  on  around  where 
you  please.  Send  your  buddy  in  alone  and  if 
possible  don't  let  Curley  see  you;  if  he  should 
happen  to  see  you,  act  as  if  you  did  not  see  him. 


64  A  FAST  GAME 

Don't  ask  me  any  questions  and  don't  ever  say 
anything  to  anybody  about  your  business;  to- 
night you  may  report  to  me." 

"I'm  your  huckleberry,  Tom,"  laughed  Ned  and 
away  he  went  whistling  and  singing  alternately — a 
rollicking  lad  with  a  quick  wit  and  a  big  heart, 
perfectly  trustworthy  and  passionately  fond  of 
his  oldest  brother.  He  would  run  a  leg  off  for 
Tom  any  time  for  in  those  days  his  favors  all 
came  from  him  and  his  mother. 

At  one  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  Curley  put  in 
an  appearance  and  started  up  to  his  regular  posi- 
tion. "Sick  this  morning,  Curley?"  Tom  asked 
pleasantly. 

"Yaas!"  he  snapped  out.  ''Dizzy.  Thought 
I'd  better  stay  on  the  ground." 

"I'm  sorry.     Be  careful  this  afternoon." 

"Ye  ken  count  on  Curley  to  look  out  fur  number 
one  every  time,"  he  answered  in  a  softer  tone 
as  he  swung  himself  aloft,  a  phantom  of  a  smile 
flitting  across  his  swarthy  face. 

It  was  late  before  Tom  arrived  home  that  even- 
ing but  his  faithful  servant  met  him  two  blocks 
down  the  street.  Ned  quickly  shied  up  and 
seized  his  brother  by  the  arm  and  excitedly  reeled 
off  his  lingo  in  an  undertone  as  if  the  salvation  of 
the  town  depended  on  his  message. 

"I  seed  the  cuss,  Tom,  down  on  the  baal  ground 
boxin'  wid  that  'ere  seme-f 'essional  duffer  frum  up 
Bunker  Hill  way.  Ye  know  um,  Tom,  don't  ye? 
That  same  un's  danged  near  put  Billy  Watkins 
ter  sleep  ter  stay.  Me'n'  Skip  seed  'em  trough  a 
hole  in  the  fence  an'  Curley  punched  'im  up  good. 
I  tell  ye,  they  did  larrup  each  odder  up  some. 
Then  they  went  ter  The  Anth'acite  tegedder  an' 


AN  ENEMY  65 

set  'em  up.  Skip,  he  shinned  in  ahind  'em  an* 
seed  Curley  sling  the  mon'  round  there  ter  beat 
the  band.  Had  dough  ter  burn.  That  wus 
about  'leven  o'clock;  an'  after  that  he  went  back 
ter  old  Miss  Koninski's,  got  'is  grub  an'  has  ben 
up  on  the  breaker  the  rest  o'  the  day,  ain't  'e, 
Tom?  Did  I  git  'nough  information  ter  suit  ye? 
By  thumpers!  it  tickles  me  yit  ter  think  how  them 
fellers  did  slug  each  odder,  but  Curley  stuck  it 
tew  'im,  right,  just  the  samey!" 

By  this  time  the  brothers  were  at  their  gate 
and  Ned's  breath  had  nearly  deserted  him  from 
rapid  talking.  "Yes,  Ned,  you  have  found  out 
just  what  I  wanted  to  know  and  here's  a  quarter 
for  doing  it." 

Tom  handed  him  the  coin  which  Ned  whisked 
out  of  the  palm  of  his  hand  as  quickly  as  a  hen 
would  pick  up  a  kernel  of  corn,  and  slipped  away 
saying  soberly,  "Oh!  never  mind  a  little  thing  like 
that.  I'll  soon  have  anodder  V  ter  put  in  the 
bank  if  the  ol'  man  don't  git  'is  clutches  on  it." 

Tom  then  did  a  problem  in  addition,  the  sum 
of  which  satisfied  him  that  Curley  was  implicated 
in  the  villainous  trick.  The  only  time  Curley 
ever  had  money  on  his  person  was  within  a  week 
after  pay-day  and  that  day  had  passed  more  than 
three  weeks.  The  conclusion  of  the  whole  matter 
was  that  he  had  received  a  bribe  from  some  un- 
known individual,  cut  the  timber  nearly  in  two 
and  remained  away  from  his  work  to  save  his 
own  neck.  Worthless  as  that  neck  might  seem  to 
many  a  person,  Tom  valued  it  more  than  he  did 
that  of  the  snake  in  the  grass — the  individual 
who  furnished  the  bribe. 

There  were  just  four  things  for  him  to  do  and 


66  A  FAST  GAME 

those  were,  to  keep  the  secret  as  far  as  he  knew 
it,  set  a  watch  at  the  breaker,  use  everyone  of  his 
employes  alike  and  go  ahead.  The  truth  of  the 
matter  would  come  out  sooner  or  later  and,  with- 
out showing  suspicion  in  anyway,  the  villian 
would  be  thrown  off  his  guard  and  caught  when 
least  expecting  it. 

The  days  went  by  without  further  incident 
until  the  timbering  neared  completion.  One 
day  while  hoisting  a  heavy  stick  of  timber  it  broke, 
the  tension  of  the  rope  flinging  the  two  pieces 
apart  and  hurling  the  rider  into  the  air  from  which 
he  alighted  into  a  heap  of  rubbish.  The  shock 
knocked  him  into  insensibility,  broke  a  leg  and 
bruised  him  up  generally.  The  stick  had  been 
sawed  nearly  in  two  yet  with  such  care  that, 
in  the  hurry  of  the  moment,  the  mark  passed  un- 
noticed and  by  mere  accident  had  been  at  the 
top  of  the  timber  when  lifted,  causing  the  break 
to  happen  where  it  would  make  the  least  possible 
damage. 

Tom  called  an  ambulance  which  quickly  took 
the  unfortunate  rider  to  his  home  where  Dr. 
Evan  Morgan  attended  to  his  physical  needs. 
Everything  that  could  be  done  for  the  sufferer 
was  done.  The  weeks  passed  into  months,  how- 
eve  ,  before  he  could  walk  in  the  open  air  again 
and  even  then  he  hobbled,  destined  to  be  a  cripple 
the  remainder  of  his  life.  He  had  rode  to  the 
dizzy  heights  for  the  last  time. 

Tom  often  called  on  his  late  employe  on  the 
way  to  and  from  his  work.  Entering  the  bruised 
man's  room  one  day  without  knocking,  he  sur- 
prised Dr.  Morgan  and  Naomi.  They  stood 
together  in  an  adjoining  room,  absorbed  in  con- 


AN  ENEMY  67 

versation.  The  intruder  modestly  apologized  and 
quickly  passed  into  the  sickroom  where  he  found 
the  patient  asleep. 

The  doctor  quietly  informed  him  that  his 
patient  rested  well  and  improved  nicely.  Tom 
remained  but  a  moment  more  and  left  the  house, 
wondering.  He  held  no  grudge  against  his  long 
tried  friend.  He  lay  no  blame  at  Naomi's  feet. 
He  truly  believed  that  no  jealousy,  either  active 
or  dormant,  lay  in  his  heart,  and  yet,  he  knew 
he  loved  Naomi  with  all  his  life.  He  fully  realized 
the  difference  between  their  inherent  social  circle 
and  that  of  his  own,  their  past  lives,  their  culture 
and  their  circumstances;  nevertheless,  manly 
worth  counted  for  more  than  inheritance.  No 
one  need  remain  in  the  social  strata  in  which  he 
chanced  to  be  born  any  more  than  he  must  needs 
live  in  poverty  if  perchance  his  swaddling  clothes 
contained  a  coarser  texture  than  those  of  his 
wealthier  neighbor  across  the  way. 

He  well  knew  that  his  own  life  had  been  a  failure 
up  to  within  the  last  twelve  months.  Dr.  Morgan's 
father  mined  coal  for  a  living,  so  also  did  Erastus 
Boland.  Therefore,  each  inherited  the  identical 
social  grade.  What  better  off  was  Naomi?  Only 
one  generation  farther  up  the  worldly  scale,  for 
her  grandfather,  though  not  a  miner,  tilled  the 
soil  to  earn  his  bread  and  butter;  the  only  differ- 
ence being  that  he  labored  on  the  ground  rather 
than  in  it. 

The  problem  solved  itself  perfectly  clear  in  Tom's 
mind  and  whetted  his  determination  to  win  the 
hand  of  Naomi  in  the  lists  of  worthy  wooing  and 
by  an  open  and  knightly  contest.  True,  the 
doctor's  profession  ranked  above  his.  The  hands 


68  A  FAST  GAME 

accustomed  to  doling  out  sugar  coated  tablets 
and  acrid  capsules  wore  a  smoother  gloss  than  the 
callous,  sunburnt  hands  of  an  out-of-doors  con- 
tractor. The  professional  man's  clothing  smacked 
of  the  tailor-shop,  but  the  best  of  garments  soon 
become  filthy  rags.  Furthermore,  the  doctor's 
past  record,  both  character  and  reputation,  shone 
in  the  light  of  public  criticism  as  clean  and  white 
as  a  pond  lily,  and  what  hurt  poor  Tom  most  was 
that  the  same  could  not  be  truthfully  said  about 
himself.  And  still  more  than  all  else  put  together, 
he  and  the  doctor  had  always  been  and,  as  far  as 
he  was  concerned,  always  would  be  the  warmest 
of  friends. 

With  these  thoughts  running  through  his  mind 
he  hurried  out  of  the  house  and  on  to  The  Black 
Diamond  Company's  office  to  make  his  report. 
The  third  payment  named  in  the  contract  was 
due  provided  that  the  work  had  progressed  to  a 
certain  stage  of  completion.  Both  brothers 
chanced  to  be  in  the  office;  Beniamin  at  the  desk 
where  Tom  usually  reported.  The  contractor 
merely  passed  the  time  of  day  and  handed  in  his 
report.  The  operator  soon  looked  over  the  paper. 
It  appeared  satisfactory  for  he  immediately  threw 
it  on  the  desk,  took  up  his  check  book,  drew  a 
check  of  twenty  thousand  dollars  and  handed 
the  negotiable  slip  to  Tom  with  a  polite  , 'Thank 
you!" 

"Thank  you!"  answered  Tom  modestly  and 
left  the  room.  Not  a  word  was  asked  him  whether 
the  work  went  easy  or  whether  it  went  hard  and 
no  reference  was  made  to  the  work  oi  the  unknown 
fiend.  Tom  thought  it  a  little  strange,  yet,  so 
long  as  he  received  that  for  which  his  contract 


AN  ENEMY  69 

called,  what  more  could  he  expect?  In  fact,  it  was 
all  he  cared  for.  He  took  the  contract  for  his 
own  benefit  and  purpose  and,  at  the  same  time, 
he  meant  to  benefit  the  company  as  much  as 
himself. 

The  interests  of  the  two  parties  concerned  were 
identical.  He  had  put  in  his  bid  without  con- 
dition, they  had  accepted  it  on  the  same  terms. 
The  contract  bound  both  parties  alike.  If  he 
completed  the  work  before  the  expiration  of  the 
time  limit,  it  made  two  hundred  dollars  per  day 
extra  for  him  for  every  day  so  gained;  and  if  he 
exceeded  the  time,  it  meant  two  hundred  dollars 
a  day  his  forfeiture  and  their  gain  from  the  total 
contract  price.  It  was  to  their  interest  that  the 
work  be  done  as  quickly  as  possible;  his  case  was 
the  same.  They  lost,  if  the  work  lagged;  so  also 
did  he.  He  knew  the  requirements  of  the  con- 
tract, so  did  they.  If  he  said  nothing  but  "Good- 
evening"  and  handed  in  his  report,  he  should  find 
no  fault  if  they  gave  the  same  salutation  and 
handed  out  their  report. 

While  striding  along  the  street  ruminating  these 
ideas  the  thought  of  Naomi  and  the  doctor  was 
crowded  out  of  his  mind.  A  comfortable  satis- 
faction possessed  him.  He  concluded  that  the 
company  had  supreme  confidence  in  him  or  else 
they  would  have  mentioned  something  to  the 
contrary.  There  was  nothing  to  sav  on  either 
side.  Each  party  had  its  duty  and  duty  needs 
no  compliments  or  praise. 

The  days  flew  by.  Summer  quietly  lost  itself 
in  abundant  September.  Naomi  had  come  and 
gone,  back  and  forth,  between  the  city  and  the 
Slocum  cottage  on  the  shore  of  Lake  Chehocton. 


70  A  FAST  GAME 

The  grandfather  had  spent  his  entire  time  in  the 
country  since  he  went  there  in  July.  He  had 
lived  his  youthful  days  over  again.  The  sons  had 
traveled  back  and  forth,  though  they  had  spent 
most  of  the  time  in  the  city.  The  vacation 
season  drew  near  its  close.  One  evening  as  Tom 
hastened  home  he  met  the  doctor.  They  ex- 
changed friendly  twilight  salutations  and  passed 
on.  To  his  surprise  Tom  found  Naomi  talking 
with  his  mother  and  urging  her  to  go  up  in  the 
country  with  her  the  next  Monday  morning. 
Surely  the  doctor  must  have  walked  up  with  the 
girl. 

"She  can  go  just  as  well  as  not,  can't  she?" 
asked  Naomi  when  Tom  stepped  over  the  thresh- 
hold. 

"Why,  of  course."  Then  turning  to  his  mother, 
continued,  "You  know  you  can  go,  mother. 
Jennie  and  the  rest  of  us  can  spare  you  a  few 
days  when  you  are  resting.  Go  by  all  means." 

Poor  timid  Mrs.  Boland  scarcely  knew  what 
to  say  or  do.  She  had  been  so  accustomed  to 
abuse  and  poverty  that  the  possibility  of  spending 
a  day  in  the  country  lay  beyond  the  rim  of  her 
mental  horizon.  Like  a  weak  birdling,  she  simply 
had  to  be  pushed  out  of  the  nest  to  recognize  her 
wings  of  opportunity.  And  out  Naomi  and  Tom 
pushed  her. 

The  following  week  she  spent  "round  the  sand 
rimmed  pickerel  pond"  of  the  upper  Moosics. 
Those  days  spent  with  Uncle  Hiram,  and  Naomi 
especially,  lightened  her  burdens,  brightened 
her  future,  invigorated  her  jaded  body  and  re- 
awakened the  happy  recollections  of  her  girl- 
hood; so  that,  by  the  end  of  the  week,  she  re- 


AN  ENEMY  71 

turned  home  a  new  person  in  health  and  antici- 
pation. The  cruel  treadmill  that  she  had  so  long 
trodden  alone  now  appeared  a  shining  path  of 
duty  and  privilege. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  Diamond  breaker  received 
its  finishing  touches.  Golden  October  swept 
its  gilding-brush  along  the  hilltops  which  stood 
sentinel  over  the  widening  and  winding  Lacka- 
wanna  valley.  Twenty  days  yet  remained  before 
the  first  of  November,  the  date  specified  in  the 
contract  for  the  completion  of  the  breaker.  Tom 
had  planned  the  next  day  to  be  inspection  when 
the  business  would  be  closed  and  the  structure 
passed  from  the  contractor's  hands  to  those  of 
the  owner's,  provided  that  all  was  as  agreed. 

To  be  sure  that  no  possible  injury  could  come 
to  his  work,  Tom  posted  his  father  with  the  other 
night  watchman,  the  two  to  be  located  at  different 
parts  of  the  premises  in  constant  and  instant 
communication  with  each  other.  Unfortunately 
for  him  as  well  as  for  all  others  concerned,  on  his 
way  to  work  that  night  Erastus  Boland  fell  in  with 
an  old  comrade  who  slapped  him  on  his  shoulder 
in  the  most  familiar  way  and  invited  him  to  The 
Anthracite.  Now  Mr.  Boland  had  not  been  in 
that  tempter's  den  since  the  evening  the  Billy 
goat  came  in  contact  with  him.  He  had  been 
temperate  in  all  his  ways  and  the  Boland  home 
was  rapidly  growing  real  homelike.  But  for  old 
time's  sake  he  went  in  and  came  out  again;  went 
in  a  sober  and  happy  man  and  came  out  a  creature, 
burning  and  raging  for  strong  drink.  The  slumber- 
ing demon  had  awakened  and  begun  lashing 
its  victim  without  mercy.  According  to  custom, 
each  treated  and  departed,  Boland  to  his  work 


72  A  FAST  GAME 

and  the  other  to  somewhere  else.  But  under 
cover  of  darkness  and  after  an  hour's  fight  with 
his  appetite  Mr.  Boland  made  excuse  to  his  fellow 
guardsman  that  he  must  return  to  the  town  on  a 
little  business  but  would  be  back  in  an  hour  or 
so.  The  flight  of  time,  his  responsibility  to  others 
and  the  keeping  of  his  promises,  are  never  realized 
by  a  man  in  his  cups. 

Tom  left  home  the  next  morning  before  his 
father  returned.  He  was  light  hearted  and  con- 
fident that  all  was  well  and  that  his  first  great 
contract  was  finished  in  a  manner  to  be  accepted  by 
the  owners  with  entire  satisfaction.  Thus  rejoic- 
ing, he  entered  the  office  of  The  Black  Diamond 
Company.  The  Slocum  brothers  were  already 
at  their  desks  and  greeted  their  employe  very 
cordially.  After  dictating  to  Evaline  some  im- 
portant letters,  also  a  few  memoranda  notes, 
the  trio  passed  out  of  the  office  and  rapidly  walked 
cross  lots  toward  the  barren  mountain  side  upon 
which  the  new  breaker  stood  out  conspicuously 
in  the  morning  air. 

Few  words  were  exchanged  while  the  sturdy 
contractor  led  the  way  for  the  operators  who  were 
more  accustomed  to  riding  than  walking.  Several 
seconds  before  his  puffing  companions  stood 
beside  him,  Tom  reached  the  summit  of  the  spur 
of  the  mountain  that  overlooked  and  commanded 
the  first  short-range  and  full  view  of  the  building. 
He  staggered  and  sank  on  the  ground,  ashen  in 
color.  The  brothers  quickly  stood  on  either  side 
of  him  and  asked  in  the  same  breath,  "What  is 
the  matter,  Tom?" 

His  only  answer  was  a  groan  while  his  trembling 
right  hand  pointed  toward  the  breaker.  The 


AN  ENEMY  73 

cause  of  his  agitation  appeared  at  once.  A  hole, 
half  the  size  of  one  side  of  the  breaker,  had  been 
blown  out  by  some  explosive.  The  foundation  at 
that  particular  spot  lay  wrecked  and  scattered, 
the  timbers  and  boards  shivered  into  kindling 
wood  and  the  whole  structure,  more  or  less, 
wrenched  and  sagged  out  of  position  and  out  of 
plumb.  Instead  of  the  four  thousands  of  dollars 
extra  for  the  early  completion  of  the  building,  it 
would  require  more  than  the  alloted  time  to  repair 
the  damage,  to  say  nothing  of  the  thousands  of 
dollars  necessary  to  rebuild  the  ruined  parts.  It 
was  no  wonder  that  Tom  sank  powerless  to  the 
ground.  It  meant  his  financial  ruin,  at  least,  he 
would  have  nothing  to  show  for  his  summer's  work 
after  his  contract  obligations  were  fulfilled. 

Only  for  an  instant,  however,  did  Tom  remain 
on  the  ground.  He  sprang  to  his  feet  exclaiming, 
"Where  are  my  father  and  Joe?" 

As  Tom  hurried  here  and  there  among  the 
rubbish  he  spied  the  faithful  watchman,  Joe,  lying 
beneath  some  of  the  fragments  of  timbers.  He 
placed  his  hand  on  the  bloody  forehead.  It  was  cold. 

"But  where  can  father  be?"  he  groaned,  hurrying 
on. 

Henry  turned  and  hastened  toward  the  city  as 
rapidly  as  possible  under  the  strain  of  the  moment, 
saying  in  a  faltering  voice,  "I'll  go  for  the  coroner." 

No  trace  of  the  father  could  be  found  anywhere. 
In  the  position  where  the  watchman  usually 
remained  the  greater  part  of  the  night,  Tom  and 
Benjamin  discovered  a  pool  of  blood.  They 
immediately  concluded  that  a  foul  game  had  been 
played  on  the  guard.  That  discovery  also  aroused 
his  suspicions  that  the  same  fate  had  befallen  his 


74  A  FAST  GAME 

father,  that  his  body  lay  buried  beneath  the  debris 
or  carried  to  a  hiding  place  in  the  underbrush 
nearby  or,  perhaps,  hurled  down  the  shaft.  They 
continued  searching  till  the  coroner  and  many 
others  arrived  on  the  scene.  The  officer  at  once 
impaneled  a  jury  and  held  an  inquest.  The 
evidence  was  clear  and  conclusive  so  that  the 
jurymen  soon  brought  in  a  verdict  that  the  victim 
had  met  his  death  from  the  shot  of  a  thirty-eight 
caliber  revolver  by  the  hand  of  an  unknown  indi- 
vidual. 

But  nothing  could  be  found  of  the  whereabouts 
of  Erastus  Boland.  Searching  parties  scoured 
the  mountain  side.  The  police  were  notified 
and  they  searched  the  city.  The  news  of  the 
missing  man  spread  so  rapidly  that  by  noon  the 
police  received  information  that  he  lay  drunk  in 
the  stables  adjoining  The  Anthracite.  They 
immediately  conveyed  the  unconscious  man  to 
his  home  and  summoned  medical  aid.  Dr.  Morgan 
diagnosed  the  case  and  pronounced  it  a  simple 
"drunk."  Later  in  the  day  the  intoxicated  man 
awoke  and,  when  questioned,  told  the  name  of 
the  comrade  who  had  induced  him  to  drink. 
They  searched  for  the  tempter,  but  he  could  not 
be  found.  The  devil  had  stolen  another  trick 
and  the  game  was  lost  for  the  time  being. 

In  the  meanwhile,  Tom  set  a  gang  of  men  at 
work  to  clear  away  the  rubbish,  placed  his  dead 
servant  in  charge  of  an  undertaker  and  ordered 
his  old  foreman  to  make  out  a  bill  for  the  timbers 
and  lumber  necessary  to  repair  the  damage;  so 
that,  by  night,  he  had  everything  in  readiness 
to  commence  rebuilding  the  following  morning. 
Within  thirty  days  the  breaker  stood  again  ready 


AN  ENEMY  75 

for  inspection.  The  Black  Diamond  Company 
promptly  accepted  the  edifice  and  paid  the  balance 
due  the  contractor.  The  two  thousand  dollars 
forfeiture,  because  the  building  was  not  com- 
pleted till  ten  days  later  than  contract  time,  the 
company  kindly  cancelled.  Tom  had  hoped  to 
clear  several  thousand  dollars  on  the  job,  yet, 
like  many  of  our  fondest  hopes,  Tom's  had  been 
dashed  to  the  ground.  He  had  carried  out  his 
plans  but  the  anticipated  results  did  not  come. 
When  he  paid  all  his  outstanding  bills  and  entered 
the  humble  home  in  Maffit's  patch  on  the  evening 
of  the  tenth  of  November  he  stood  even  with 
the  world — even  financially  and  socially — but  he 
trusted  that  he  had  gained  experience.  He  also 
had  learned  that  he  had  enemies  who  lay  in  wait 
to  do  evil  against  him,  and  that  he  had  friends, 
too,  who  stood  firmly  by  him  and  trusted  in  him. 
He  believed  the  game  worth  the  playing. 

Naomi,  however,  seemed  farther  away  than  ever 
with  Dr.  Morgan  on  the  inside  track.  His  finan- 
cial misfortune  cut  deepest  when  he  thought  of 
Naomi  and  his  mother,  although  he  detected  by 
the  public  pulse  that  his  reputation  for  sterling 
integrity,  honesty  and  genuine  manly  push,  had 
become  fixed  in  the  business  circle  of  the  city. 
This  alone  placed  him  on  an  equal  footing  with 
Dr.  Morgan.  Amid  the  discouragements  investing 
him  the  sunshine  broke  in.  The  unexpected 
happened. 

The  following  morning  after  he  had  made  his 
final  settlement  with  The  Black  Diamond  Com- 
pany, that  company  notified  him  to  report  at  the 
office  at  once.  He  wondered  what  was  coming 
and  went  his  way  to  report  as  requested.  To  his 


76  A  FAST  GAME 

suprise,  the  Slocum  brothers  tendered  him  the 
position  of  general  superintendent  of  the  Diamond 
mine,  a  position  made  possible  by  the  completion 
of  the  breaker.  He  hesitated,  considered  and 
accepted.  He  proposed  to  play  the  game  to  the 
end. 


CHAPTER    VI 

MUTTERINGS 

Bleak  November  beat  its  storms  and  whistled 
its  winds  through  the  streets  of  Onaway,  pelting 
its  fury  alike  against  the  palatial  homes  of  the 
coal  operators  and  the  comfortable  dwelling 
places  of  the  sober  and  industrious  miners  and 
whirling  around  the  rough  boarded  company 
houses.  Jack  Frost  and  Boreas  had  discolored 
and  twirled  the  green  mantle,  which  had  so  viva- 
ciously and  comely  bedecked  the  summer  hill- 
sides, and  left  its  frilled  and  russet  rents  flapping 
in  the  autumnal  gales. 

Winter  hovered  over  the  city  like  a  vulture 
over  its  prey;  and  its  prey  consisted  of  those 
workmen  who  lived  as  if  work  would  always 
be  plenty,  their  families'  needs  always  supplied, 
their  own  wants  satisfied  and  their  employer's 
patience  and  generosity  unlimited.  The  ap- 
proach of  cold  weather  is  sufficiently  unpromising 
to  anyone  but  especially  so  to  those  who  live 
from  hand  to  mouth  whether  in  the  midst  of  a 
feast  or  a  famine. 

Summer  needs  are  less  than  those  of  Winter. 
Clothing  and  fuel  are  less  expensive.  So  long 
as  the  money  lasts  comes  the  temptation  to  take 
in  excursions  and,  with  the  day's  outing,  a  general 
gratification  craze  loosens  purse  strings  of  the 

77 


78  A  FAST  GAME 

wage  earner.  The  unmarried  man  must,  as 
a  matter  of  course,  put  up  a  good  time  for  his 
friend,  or,  if  the  friend  is  not  forthcoming,  he 
must  go  with  the  crowd  and  not  be  counted 
stingy;  and  should  he  be  a  man  of  a  family,  on 
that  particular  day  he  must  gratify  every  whim  of 
his  children  by  purchasing  every  nonsensical 
toy  on  exhibition,  by  patronizing  the  merry-go- 
rounds,  the  chute  the  chutes,  the  roller  coaster 
and  what  not.  Besides,  he  indulges  the  young- 
sters \vith  sweetmeats,  plastering  them  outside 
and  in;  and  for  his  own  edification,  he  must  take 
at  least  one  round  "with  the  boys,"  and  that 
one  round,  just  for  luck,  too  often  terminates 
in  visible  excess,  and  excess  means  disgrace. 

The  night  after  the  gala  day  finds  the  poor 
deluded  fellow  at  home,  moneyless,  unrested 
and  out  of  sorts;  all  because  somebody  else,  as 
he  contends,  has  not  done  the  right  thing  by 
him.  This  and  many  other  ways  of  indulging 
vanity  and  vice  waste  away  the  wages  of  summer 
when  actual  expenses  are  the  least,  and,  in  the 
dead  of  winter,  leave  the  unfortunate  one  in 
straitened  circumstances,  if  he  continue  to 
labor;  but  if  work  is  slack  or  stops  altogether, 
actual  poverty  stares  him  and  his  family  in  the 
face.  In  either  case  he  becomes  an  easy  vic- 
tim to  persuasion  along  the  line  of  politics,  popular 
agitation,  dissipation,  graft  or  religion. 

Without  moral  stamina,  the  tendency  of  pov- 
erty is  toward  socialism;  that  of  plenty,  toward 
prodigality.  Prodigality  is  the  mother  of  poverty. 
Therefore,  the  issue  of  immorality  is  general 
dissatisfaction;  religiously,  dissatisfied  with  the 
so  called  aristocracy  and  hypocricy  of  the  churches ; 


MUTTERINGS  79 

economically,  dissatisfied  with  the  apparent  com- 
fort and  happiness  of  the  employer  or  rich  as 
compared  with  the  pinch  of  poverty  and  misery 
of  the  employe  or  poor.  It  is  argued  that  wealth 
secures  happiness,  and  the  accumulation  of  the 
same,  ease. 

This  comparison  is  usually  made  between 
incomparable  objects.  For  instance,  wealth  and 
poverty  cannot  be  compared,  only  contrasted, 
because  they  are  opposites;  while,  on  the  other 
hand,  the  man  of  wealth  and  the  man  of  poverty 
may  be  compared,  in  as  much  as  they  have 
likeness  in  qualities  but  differences  in  degree. 
Each  member  of  the  human  family  has  the  qual- 
ities that  win — the  intelligence,  the  sensibility 
and  the  will.  The  methods  of  development 
and  the  use  of  these  qualities  may  differ  so  widely 
that  the  results  obtained  are  opposites;  hence, 
the  results  must  be  contrasted  and  not  compared. 

Herein  we  make  many  blunders  by  invidious 
comparisons.  Or,  in  other  words,  the  labor- 
workman  often  misjudges  the  capital-workman 
by  the  contrasts  of  their  present  positions,  in- 
stead of  comparing  their  economical  modes  of 
living,  and  vice  versa 

The  miserable  one  goes  to  the  frigid  zone, 
shivers  and  curses  the  sun  because  it  will  not 
warm  him;  he  sows  poor  seed  in  poorer  soil,  in 
the  wrong  time  of  the  moon,  neglects  the  culti- 
vation of  the  growing  vegetation,  and  curses 
the  stunted  crop,  while,  over  the  fence,  his  neigh- 
bor's garden  is  abundant  in  product;  the  one 
sets  his  sail,  ties  the  rudder  and  curses  the  wind 
that  will  not  change  so  that  his  course  may  be 
altered,  while  the  other  trims  his  sails,  seizes  the 


80  A  FAST  GAME 

rudder  and  jams  the  prow  of  his  craft  into  the 
teeth  of  the  wind  and  sails  whithersoever  he 
desires.  The  one  opposes  law, 'the  other  obeys 
it. 

Andrew  Morgan,  a  Welch  miner,  had  brought 
up  a  large  family,  five  girls  and  six  boys — eleven 
in  all — who  had  passed  the  age  of  sixteen,  to  say 
nothing  of  the  pain  and  anguish  and  expense 
concomitant  with  the  three  little  sodded  mounds 
on  the  slope  of  the  Laurel  Hill  cemetery  where 
they  overlooked  the  barren  culm  piles,  the  intri- 
cate network  of  railroads  and  the  dark  waters 
of  the  Lackawanna. 

Andrew  still  worked  in  the  mines,  somewhat 
stiffened  and  scarred  from  his  dangerous  and 
arduous  toil,  yet  withal,  a  healthy  and  hardy 
man  of  fifty-five.  In  his  declining  years  he  had 
no  anxiety  for  the  future,  either  in  this  world 
or  the  next.  He  lived  in  his  own  house,  owned 
another  house  from  which  he  received  rent, 
and  had  a  nest  egg  of  a  few  hundred  dollars 
laid  away  snugly  in  the  savings  bank.  He  still 
drew  his  accustomed  wages.  All  his  children 
earned  their  own  living  except  Phebe — a  cripple 
of  a  most  lovable  and  philosophical  nature.  As 
to  his  prospects  in  the  next  world,  they  even  shone 
with  a  more  beautiful  luster  than  those  of  this. 
From  the  day  that  he  and  his  wife,  Mary,  be- 
gan keeping  house  in  a  little  tumbled-down 
company  shanty,  with  less  than  ten  dollars 
worth  of  furniture  in  it,  they  had  not  failed  to 
worship  daily  and  devoutly  at  the  family  altar. 

That  their  son  Richard  caroused  and  gambled 
was  no  fault  with  the  home  training — and  that 
training  was  not  of  the  Puritanical  order  either 


MUTTERINGS  81 

but  the  personification  of  gentleness  and  sound 
sense.  Not  only  was  Andrew  a  home  Christian 
but  also  "an  every  day  workman  for  the  Lord," 
as  he  termed  it.  He  attended  as  regularly  to 
the  fires  of  his  church  altar  as  he  did  the  family 
altar,  and  for  many  years  he  had  given  the  tenth 
of  his  gross  income  to  the  work  of  the  God  whom 
he  worshiped.  His  character  and  work  passed 
without  question. 

Mr.  Morgan  had  been  a  member  of  The  Mine 
Workers'  Union  ever  since  its  introduction  in 
the  valley.  He  thoroughly  believed  in  the  prin- 
ciples of  labor  organization,  and  was  not  averse 
to  capital  combination,  provided  that  the  Golden 
Rule  was  the  law  of  the  combination.  He  meas- 
ured his  own  union  by  the  same  rule.  With- 
out challenge  he  passed  as  fairminded,  a  man  of 
intelligence  and  integrity,  one  whose  counsel  was 
worth  asking  for  and  following,  a  man  whose 
acquaintance  was  worth  making  and  whose 
friendship  was  worth  cherishing.  He  spoke  few 
words  though  these  words  were  pregnant  with 
meaning.  When  bantered  concerning  his  reti- 
cence he  invariably  answered  in  his  droll  humor, 
"Why,  Maary  doos  the  chatter  fur  both  oov  us." 
He  played  a  winning  game. 

Erastus  Boland,  though  a  decade  younger  than 
Andrew  Morgan,  had  nothing  in  the  world  but 
five  children,  a  wife  and  the  scantiest  of  furniture 
in  a  rented  company  house.  Since  Tom  had 
reformed  many  comforts  had  come  to  the  home 
but  not  through  any  merit  of  the  father. 

For  years  Erastus  had  worked  side  by  side  with 
Andrew,  receiving  the  same  wages  and  having 
every  opportunity  of  the  other,  but  had  wasted 


82  A  FAST  GAME 

his  earnings,  his  health  and  his  character.  Twenty- 
five  years  before,  had  the  vote  of  the  public  been 
taken  concerning  the  prospects  of  the  two  men, 
the  lucky  lot  would  surely  have  fallen  to  Boland. 

As  a  young  man  he  was  a  congenial,  industrious, 
generous  and  brilliant  Irishman,  and  of  that 
winning  nature  which  captured  for  his  wife 
a  girl  from  one  of  the  best  families  in  the  neigh- 
borhood. He  never  lay  awake  nights,  however, 
to  worry  over  his  principles.  He  practiced 
honesty  as  the  best  policy  provided  he  did  not 
get  drunk  and  forget.  He  provided  generously 
for  his  family  if  he  did  not  spend  his  month's 
pay  over  the  bar  before  he  arrived  home  with 
it.  Religion,  apparently,  had  never  entered  his 
mind.  Every  organization  under  the  sun  he 
opposed,  hence,  as  one  would  expect,  he  was  a 
non-union  man  of  the  deepest  dye.  Would  he 
win  or  lose  the  game  and  why? 

These  families  are  contrasted,  not  because  one 
is  a  Welch  family  and  the  other  an  Irish  family, 
implying  that  the  difference  of  nationality  makes 
a  difference  of  circumstances  or  that  one  is  union 
and  the  other  is  non-union;  but  they  are  placed 
here,  side  by  side,  to  illustrate  types  of  men  and 
families  of  all  nationalities  and  to  show  that 
circumstances  are  not  all  due  to  misfortune,  but 
are  largely  due  to  choice  and  the  manner  of 
living  of  those  who  would  pose  as  the  fortunate 
or  the  unfortunate,  the  lucky  or  the  unlucky. 
These  two  types  may  be  extreme  cases,  though 
we  think  they  are  not,  and  even  if  they  are,  they 
prove  without  a  question  that  a  sober  and  in- 
dustrious man  may  live  in  comfort  and  happiness, 


MUTTERINGS  83 

and  rear  a  family  which  will  be  a  blessing  rather 
than  a  curse  to  the  world. 

However,  it  is  a  well  known  law  of  nature  that 
a  tree,  grown  from  a  seed  of  the  choicest  fruit, 
will  be  wild  in  its  nature  and  produce  wild  fruit, 
and  that  a  choice  graft  must  be  inserted  into  the 
wild  branch  in  order  to  bring  forth  the  choice 
fruit;  so  also,  is  it  well  known  that  the  best  and 
most  virtuous  of  parents  will  bear  offspring  as 
wild  as  the  wildest,  and  that  a  bleeding  scion 
from  Calvary's  tree  alone  can  bring  forth  the 
good  fruit.  "By  their  fruit  ye  shall  know  them." 

Another  type  of  laboring  man  we  find  in  the 
army  of  foremen,  superintendents  and  general 
managers  of  companies  and  capitalists.  They 
cannot  belong  to  the  capitalists  because  they 
own  no  stock  and  have  no  voice  in  the  rules  and 
regulations  which  govern  the  action  of  the  com- 
pany they  serve.  They  simply  execute  the  laws 
prescribed  for  them. 

On  the  other  hand,  they  belong  to  no  labor 
union  —  as  a  rule  —  because  they  cannot  be 
classed  among  those  who  are  properly  styled  the 
working  men,  although  they  are  usually  pro- 
moted from  that  class  and  are  more  or  less  in 
sympathy  with  it.  Frequently,  however,  the 
son  or  relative  of  the  capitalist  is  appointed  to 
these  supposed  better  positions. 

John  Ransom,  an  English  miner,  is  a  man  who 
has  worked  up  from  the  ranks  to  the  superin- 
tendency  of  The  Black  Diamond  Company.  He, 
too,  is  in  comfortable  circumstances;  has  three 
sons  and  two  daughters,  all  of  whom  are  grown 
to  manhood  and  womanhood.  He  plays  in  the 
same  game. 


84  A  FAST  GAME 

While  the  winter  crept  on  those,  who  had  not 
laid  up  for  themselves  a  store  for  the  time  of 
need,  began  to  murmur.  Mutterings  of  discon- 
tent grew  louder  and  louder.  The  prospects 
grew  brighter  for  a  strike  to  be  declared  the  first 
of  April,  the  expiration  of  the  agreement  and 
award  of  the  Strike  Commission.  Sympathy  be- 
tween the  breadwinners  in  their  contrasted  con- 
ditions and  circumstances  hatched  discontent. 
Discontent  bred  conspiracy;  conspiracy  matured 
in  mischief;  and  mischief  bore  fruit,  violence 
and  slaughter  Discontent  may  originate  from 
selfish  motives,  such  as  narrowness  of  vision 
and  disregard  for  the  good  of  others  or,  it  may 
grow  out  of  long  oppression  and  injustice.  In 
either  case,  on  account  of  the  few  who  will  al- 
ways lack  breadth  of  views,  envy  and  strife  will, 
to  a  more  or  less  extent,  result — war,  inter- 
nationally; revolution  or  rebellion,  nationally; 
mob  violence,  socially;  and  so  on  through  the 
category  of  grievances  whether  they  be  praise- 
worthy, petty  or  pertinent;  the  ultimate  term- 
ination of  each  depending  on  the  extent  of  the 
grievances  engendered,  the  number  of  individ- 
uals engaged,  and  the  external  pressure — be 
it  financial,  legislative,  arbitrary  or  military — 
brought  to  bear  upon  the  parties  involved. 

There  is  no  question  but  that  war,  rebellion, 
and  even  mob  violence,  have,  in  many  instances, 
brought  about  permanent  good,  though  a  favorable 
result  in  such  exceptional  cases  will  not  disprove 
the  above  statement,  nor  will  it  prove  that  that 
mode  of  procedure  in  each  particular  instance 
was  the  best  and  only  manner  by  which  to  reach 
the  desired  end. 


MUTTERINGS  85 

The  prospects  or  the  present  conditions  of 
the  laborer  in  Onaway  never  diminished  the 
business  of  The  Anthracite  though  they  did 
disturb  the  other  lines  of  business.  The  pro- 
prietor of  that  institution  had  no  fear  about 
fluctuations  in  the  market  for  his  goods  or  the 
buyers  for  the  same.  As  a  rule,  the  more  idlers, 
the  more  he  rang  up  his  cash  register.  Not  a 
night  passed  but  patrons  crowded  the  bar.  In 
his  haunts  they  mixed  strong  toddies  and  con- 
cocted ingenious  schemes  which  they  intended 
to  better  the  condition  of  the  toilers  in  the  caverns 
of  rock,  slate  and  coal,  and  to  engender  aversion 
toward  the  coal  operators.  As  the  weeks  passed, 
the  intoxication  of  unionism  prevailed  as  con- 
spicuously as  that  of  the  fiery  liquors  imbibed. 
Slumbering  fires  and  pent  up  forces  of  selfish 
human  nature  oozed  out  into  mutterings  of  dis- 
content and  agitation  which,  all  too  soon,  would 
break  out  into  friction,  fury  and  fight. 

"Well,  the  time's  come  to  get  busy,"  said  Oscar 
Morgan,  setting  his  beer  mug  down  on  the  bar 
and  drawing  his  hand  across  his  mouth.  "It 
makes  me  hot  in  the  collar  when  I  think  how  the 
capitalists  run  things  so  arbitrarily.  I've  ben  in 
the  mines  ever  since  I  could  throw  a  sprag,  an' 
'ave  handled  ev'rything  from  a  doorlatch  to  a 
drill,  an'  I  know  what  I'm  tolkin'  about,  an' 
don't  ye  furgit  it.  I've  had  me  wages  cut  an' 
me  hours  lengthened  and  'ave  ben  ground  by  the 
heel  of  oppression,  while  the  oppressors  slept  in 
their  feathers  which  they  bought  with  the  margin 
between  what  I  got  fur  me  wark  an'  what  I  ought 
'o  got.  I'm  in  fur  the  union  an'  I'm  union  ev'ry 
time." 


86  A  FAST  GAME 

"  'Ere,  'ere!"  shouted  a  half  dozen.  "We're 
wid  ye!" 

"As  I  was  a  goin'  to  say,"  and  he  expectorated 
at  a  distant  cuspidor,  /the  time's  come  to  git  'n 
the  game.  Personally,  I  ain't  got  no  kick  comin' 
for  I  hain't  ben  out  of  a  job  yet  and  I  think  The 
Black  Diamond  Company  's  good  's  the  best  of 
'em,  an'  it  ain't  'n  the  trust  either,  but,"  clearing 
his  throat  as  a  pretence  for  making  his  words 
more  emphatic,  "in  these  times,  ye  can't  jest  tell 
who's  yer  friends  nor  what  minute  the  ones  ye 
think  do  be  yer  friends  will  give  ye  a  stab  in  the 
back." 

"Who's  that  who  will  stab  you  in  the  back, 
Oscar?"  chimed  in  the  pleasant  voice  of  Ed 
Slocum,  who  had  entered  the  room  unobserved  by 
the  speaker.  Morgan  blushed  to  a  crimson,  for 
a  moment,  speechless.  A  hush  fell  on  the  auditors 
for  they  feared  that  the  heir  to  the  mentioned 
company  might  take  exception  to  what  had 
been  said,  or,  at  least,  resent  the  insinuation 
uttered  in  the  last  statement.  They  all  knew 
very  well  that  Ed  had  heard  all  that  Morgan  had 
said  about  the  Slocum  firm.  Instead  of  bringing 
war,  however,  Ed  brought  peace.  He  stepped 
forward  with  a  smile,  saying,  "Never  fear,  old 
man,  some  day  the  fossils  will  be  gone  and  then 
you  know  you  will  have  a  friend  who  will  stick 
by  you.  Hey?  Have  a  beer  on  it?"  Then 
turning  to  the  crowd  he  called,  "Come,  boys, 
what  will  you  take?" 

They  needed  no  second  invitation.  The  spark- 
ling liquor  flowed  and  foamed,  glowed  and  gurgled, 
while  the  glasses  clinked  and  clattered.  The 
men  quaffed  and  fell  back.  Ed  shoved  a  crisp 


MUTTERINGS  87 

greenback  over  the  bar,  and,  while  the  bartender 
drew  out  the  till  with  a  ring  of  the  bell  and  chinked 
the  change  on  the  polished  oak,  he  turned  to  his 
devotees  and  politely  remarked,  "Mr.  Morgan, 
the  appointed  agitator  of  the  Mine  Workers' 
Union,  will  now  address  you."  Then  swinging 
gracefully  toward  the  gentleman  mentioned,  he 
bowed  low  and  concluded,  "Mr.  Morgan,  you 
have  the  floor." 

The  room  rang  with  cheers  and  clapping  of 
hands  and  cries  of,  "Morgan!  Morgan!" 

There  was  but  one  thing  for  him  to  do,  namely, 
to  gratify  the  wishes  of  his  friends.  Oscar  spoke 
with  freedom  and  enthusiasm  and  posed  as  an 
extemporaneous  and  amateurish  orator.  It  was 
not  uncommon  for  him  to  address  assemblies 
similar  to  the  one  before  him.  He  always  took 
part  in  the  discussions  of  his  lodges  and  local 
union,  and  recently  had  been  elected  to  the  office  of 
agitator  and  organizer  for  the  Miners'  Union. 
Without  hesitation,  therefore,  he  stepped  for- 
ward and,  complimenting  his  introducer  and  ex- 
pressing his  appreciation  for  the  favor  conferred 
on  him,  began: 

"Gentlemen!  if  speak  I  must,  and  I'm  really 
glad  o'  the  privilege,  I'll  be  speakin'  from  the 
subject  that's  nearest  me  heart  and  that  subject 
is  the  welfare  o'  me  fellow  man.  I  do  not  be 
here  to  say  that  one  man's  better  nor  another, 
whether  he  wark  inside  or  outside,  with  grimmy 
hands  or  lady  fingers,  but  I  do  be  sayin'  that 
the  minority  should  not  be  rulin'  the  majority, 
and,  especially,  when  the  few  gobble  the  profits 
an'  leave  the  many  to  shift  fur  themselves  on  a 
bare  existence  and  on  what  the  few  have  the 


88  A  FAST  GAME 

face  to  say  is  a  fair  wage.  Of  course,  we  all 
know  that  negotiations  are  open  between  the 
Mine  Workers  and  the  operators  for  adjustment, 
or  a  readjustment  rather,  of  the  differences  of 
opinion  of  the  two  parties  concerned.  Little 
more  nor  two  years  ago  we  reached  a  settlement, 
you  know,  and  we  went  back  to  work.  Times 
has  ben  good  sence  then.  They  have,  in  some 
respects,  changed  though,  and  now  that  the 
contract  between  the  miners  and  the  operators 
expires  next  April,  it's  time  to  get  a  hustlin'  as 
to  whether  we'll  submit  to  the  old  wage  scale  or, 
with  the  increased  cost  of  living,  ask  for,  and 
receive,  an  increase  of  pay." 

He  stepped  forward  a  pace  and  expectorated 
profusely  at  a  box  of  sawdust.  Retracing  his 
step  and  rolling  the  sweet  nicotinic  morsel  under 
his  tongue,  he  continued:  "The  demands  o' 
the  Union  ain't  unreasonable  and,  I  may  say 
right  here  as  a  side  issue,  we're  goin'  to  have 
'em.  In  the  first  place  we're  goin'  to  have  the 
closed  shop,  for  if  we  don't  have  it,  the  same 
old  thing  'ill  happen  as  has  happened  before, 
only  more  so,  and  that  is  that  ev'ry  Tom,  Dick 
and  Harry  scab  frum  God  knows  where  won't 
pounce  down  on  us  like  the  locust  of  Egypt  on 
the  Nile  flats.  Some  o'  the  foreign  breed  browse 
around  like  a  mine  mule  or  a  goat  and  live  on 
two  cents  a  day — rice,  rats  or  macaroni.  They 
live  more  like  animals  nor  men." 

"Notta  so,  Misita  Morgan!"  shouted  a  voice 
in  the  crowd. 

"Be  quiet,  Tony!"  said  Ed,  raising  his  big 
hand  and  smiling  one  of  his  broad,  good-natured 
smiles. 


MUTTERINGS  89 

"We'll  git  the  eight-hour  day,  too.  That's 
as  long  's  a  man  ken  be  in  the  mines  fur  the  good 
of  his  health  and  besides,  anyone  ken  do  "s  much 
in  eight  hours  the  year  around  as  he  ken  in  ten. 
Bituminous  miners  an'  the  old  country  miners 
have  the  eight  hour  system,  and  ain't  we  as  much 
entitled  to  it  as  they  be?  And  right  on  top  o' 
that,  too,  we  demand  a  uniform  scale  o'  wages. 
That's  the  only  possible  right  way  to  pay.  When 
some  men  git  a  less  wage  nor  others  fur  doin'  the 
identical  thing  there's  bound  to  be  discontent. 
We  do  be  all  human  and  a  little  envy  will  creep 
into  the  recesses  of  our  bein'  in  spite  of  ourselves 
an'  that  ev'ry  man  git  the  same  treatment  frum 
'is  emplyer  ain't  no  unjust  demand." 

"That's  the  stuff!"  shouted  a  voice. 

"Of  course,  it's  the  stuff,  and  I'm  feedin'  it 
to  you  right,  too.  Another  thing  that's  right 
is  an  increase  o'  wages  fur  the  anthracite  miners. 
The  operators  have  put  up  a  howl  about  bein' 
compelled  to  increase  the  price  o'  coal  if  they 
increase  our  wages,  and  by  that  howl  try  to  win 
the  sympathy  o'  the  consumer.  It's  all  rot! 
a  whole  lot  o'  bluff!  Stocks  o'  the  coal  companies 
and  the  coal  carrying  railroads  do  be  shootin' 
up  all  the  while!  Yes,  it  looks  like  a  famine 
fur  the  poor  cusses.  Think  we'd  better  chip 
in  an'  give  'em  a  mite  o'  financial  aid  before 
the  sheriff  sells  'em  out  under  his  hammer." 

Cheers  and  loud  applause.  "Then,  too,  the 
only  fair  way  to  pay  fur  minin'  coal  is  by  weight. 
There  do  be  a  dozen  different  sizes  o'  cars  and 
varyin'  differences  in  the  bulk  an'  prices  o'  coal 
as  it  comes  frum  the  breast.  The  easiest  an' 
best  an'  the  fairest  scale,  an'  the  only  standard, 


90  A  FAST  GAME 

is  by  weight.  Then,  last  but  not  least,  we've 
demanded  a  reconstruction  o'  the  board  o'  con- 
ciliation as  established  by  the  strike  commission 
of  nineteen  hundred  and  three.  Why,  the  present 
board  delays  the  settlement  o'  grievances  till 
patience  ceases  to  be  virtue.  There  do  be  cases 
now  before  that  body  what  have  ben  there  fur 
more  nor  two  years.  That's  not  justice.  Any- 
thing but  hangin'  fire  fur  months,  and  years, 
even,  fur  the  final  decision  of  a  case  what  ought 
to  be  rendered  in  two  months  at  the  longest." 

"How  about  the  check  off  system?"  asked  a 
listener. 

"Oh,  well,  that's  a  matter  o'  very  little  import- 
ance anyway,"  lowering  his  voice.  "I  wish 
that  ev'ry  miner  was  honest  enough  to  pay  'is 
union  dues  without  havin'  the  enemy  collect 
'em.  But  the  operators,"  shouted  the  speaker, 
as  he  got  hold  of  another  phase  of  the  question 
under  discussion,  "the  operators  do  be  puttin' 
up  a  kick  an'  a  big  bag  o'  wind  that  the  check  off 
system  is  unconstitutional.  That's  a  hull  bunch 
o'  rot  an'  the  hull  push  know  better  nor  that. 
There  ain't  no  use  to  argue  the  question  at  all." 

"What's  the  prospects  for  a  strike?"  asked 
another  from  the  crowd  which  had  continually 
increased  until  standing  room  was  at  a  premium. 
Nor  did  all  the  listeners  sympathize  with  the 
speaker's  views  on  the  subject  under  discussion. 

"My  opinion  is  that  the  operators  ain't  got 
the  sand  to  declare  a  lockout,  much  less,  let  us 
call  a  strike.  I  know  they've  piled  up  coal  all 
along  their  lines  o'  railroad,  fur  the  railroad 
companies  an'  the  coal  companies  do  be  prac- 
tically the  same  thing,  an'  claim  they've  got 


MUTTERINGS  91 

enough  ahead  to  last  a  year  or  more,  but  it's 
all  a  bluff  before  the  public.  I  want  it  strictly 
understood  that  the  union's  got  the  mon.  an' 
a  lot  more  o'  the  shiners  nor  it  had  when  we 
struck  before.  They  may  think  they'll  run  us 
down  like  the  Merimac  tried  to  run  down  the 
Monitor,  but  they'll  find  that  we're  all  there,  an' 
we'll  puncture  their  windbags  as  easy  as  the 
Monitor  put  the  old  Confederate  boat  out  o' 
business.  But  they  won't  be  no  strike.  I  tell 
'e,  the  operators  ain't  got  the  sand  to  do  it.  We'll 
give  the  devil  'is  dues ;  they  know  better.  We've 
prepared  fur  war  in  the  time  o'  peace,  and  they 
know  it,  too.  They'll  hang  to  the  last  rag  before 
they'll  give  in,  but,  mark  what  I  say,  before 
April  first  they'll  give  us  what  we  want,  fur  ev'ry 
fair  minded  man  in  these  regions  knows  we  ask 
fur  only  what's  just  an'  right  an'  what's  our  own." 

The  climax  was  drowned  in  a  roar  of  applause  on 
the  one  hand  and  of  hisses  on  the  other.  Evi- 
dently the  speaker  had  warmed  up  himself  as 
well  as  his  hearers;  he  had  stirred  up  a  hornet's 
nest.  Little  knots  of  men  formed  in  different 
parts  of  the  room  and  began  discussing  the  var- 
ious topics  which  had  been  brought  before  them. 
Even  warm  contradictions  were  indulged  in 
and  threats  of  violence  made,  when  a  voice  shouted 
above  the  confusion,  "Do  you  think  that  now 
is  the  time  to  strike?" 

"I  certainly  do;  that  is,  the  time  to  strike  do 
be  when  the  time  of  our  contract  expires  with  the 
operators.  It's  no  time  to  strike  when  we  have 
slack  times.  That  was  our  great  mistake  before. 
Wark,  the  supply  an'  demand,  an'  things  in 
general,  was  on  the  decline,  then.  We  didn't  git 


92  A  FAST  GAME 

what  we  ought  to  got  fur  the  simple  reason  I've 
jest  told  ye.  Now  ev'rything's  on  the  boom  an' 
now's  the  time  to  strike.  But  don't  worry,  we 
won't,  fur  the  operators  know  better  nor  to  let 
us." 

"That's  'o!"  chorused  a  half  dozen. 

"How  about  the  consumer?"  asked  another. 

"That's  another  threadbare  howl.  The  public's 
got  nothin'  to  say  about  a  bargain  between  indi- 
viduals. The  same  rule  holds  good  in  the  case 
o'  companies,  an'  I  consider  our  labor  corporation 
a  trifle  ahead  of  anything  on  this  old  footstool. 
I  buy  me  leather  an'  me  clothes  an'  me  bread 
an'  me  grog,  an'  hold  me  gab  about  the  ox  an' 
the  sheep  an'  the  farmer.  I  put  down  the  price 
an'  be  a  man.  Let  them  what  burn  anthracite 
do  the  same — take  their  medicine  like  the  rest  of 
us  an'  not  go  squealin'  around  like  a  pig  with  a 
sore  ear.  Who  ever  heard  of  the  consumer 
pitchin'  on  to  a  flock  o'  sheep  or  a  woolen  mill, 
because  the  slum  waif  stands  in  the  street  half 
naked  an'  shiverin'?  As  if  their  poverty  had 
anything  to  do  with  the  price  o'  woolen  goods. 
But,  let  the  price  o'  coal  go  up  a  penny  an'  irum 
the  highest  man  in  the  nation  to  the  lowest  there 
goes  up  a  howl  worse  nor  that  o'  the  Egyptians 
when  their  first-born  got  slain.  As  if  ev'ry  bit  o' 
warmth  in  the  old  earth  come  frum  the  black 
diamond.  Why,  in  the  mountains  an'  the  hill 
country  there's  wood  to  burn,  on  the  plains  o' 
the  west  there's  corncobs  to  burn,  and — you 
may  call  me  Denis  or  Dooley  or  anything  else — 
if  in  two  years  frum  now,  when  the  operators  has 
come  to  their  senses  an'  adjusted  matters  with  us 
as  though  we  was  made  out  o'  the  same  batch  o' 


MUTTE  RINGS  93 

clay  as  them,  there  ain't  money  to  burn  frum 
one  end  to  the  other  o'  this  glorious  old  Lacka- 
wanna  valley!" 

Excitement  ran  high  by  this  time.  Ed  Slocum 
saw  the  fiery  factions  chaffing  to  get  at  each  other 
and  tried  to  stem  the  tide  by  saying  in  his  most 
genial  manner,  "Come,  boys!  all  men's  minds  run 
in  the  same  channel  at  the  ever  sparkling.  Come!" 

The  majority  stepped  to  the  front  but  in  the 
outskirts  of  the  crowd  an  evident  dissatisfaction 
with  the  speakers  words  appeared.  Several 
nationalities  pressed  promiscuousyl  together;  some 
after  the  proffered  potation,  others  gravitated 
toward  each  other  because  averse  to  drinking, 
and  still  others  drew  back  into  knots  on  account 
of  their  non-union  principles;  for  they  all  knew 
very  well  that  the  sympathy  in  general  of  The 
Anthracite  and  its  patrons  was  union  to  the  core. 
All  could  not  drink  at  the  bar  at  once  anyway  so 
that  after  the  first  squad  had  quaffed  the  beverage 
it  fell  back  to  make  room  for  the  others.  But 
all  the  rest  did  not  come  up.  A  few  had  already 
left  the  room  while  other  non-drinkers  remained 
as  if  to  settle  the  differences  of  opinion  right  then 
and  there.  Ed  noticed  the  hesitancy  and  felt 
its  meaning,  yet,  desiring  amity,  he  cheerily  called 
out  the  second  time,  "Come,  fellows!" 

"Notta  too  night,  thanka!"  returned  a  square 
built  Italian  who  stood  in  the  front  of  his  associates 
and  who  went  by  the  name  of  Tony  Bandelli. 

One  of  the  union  men  present,  who  had  more 
fire-water  than  common  sense,  immediately 
bawled,  "Scab!" 

"Comma  outa  door!  Me  showa  you  scabba!" 
retorted  Tony,  starting  for  the  door,  followed  by 


94  A  FAST  GAME 

his  opponent,  his  own  gang  and  the  majority  of 
the  others  in  the  room;  but  before  they  reached 
the  street  there  was  a  general  mixup  of  men, 
bottles,  fists,  knives,  stilettos,  fire-arms,  curses, 
yells,  chairs  and  heads.  The  Anthracite's  time 
of  travail  had  come  and  she  brought  forth  her 
legitimate  spawnl  When  the  struggling  pile 
reached  the  street  the  stillness  of  the  night  reeked 
with  howls  of  pain  and  anger. 

The  alarm  brought  several  policemen  to  the 
fray.  But  they  found  little  they  could  do. 
Most  of  the  contestants  had  disappeared,  and  the 
few,  who  remained,  had  played  so  unimportant  a 
part  in  the  game  and  had  been  so  lost  in  the 
gathering  crowd,  that  the  officers  could  make  no 
arrests.  Two  men  lay  dead  on  the  pavement  and 
three  others  writhed  in  pain,  while  their  blood  ran 
in  rivulets  down  the  sidewalk.  Among  the 
wounded  lay  Tony  with  his  head  on  Naomi's  knee. 
The  girl  was  in  the  act  of  administering  a  cup  of 
water  to  her  patient  when  a  policeman  lay  his  hand 
roughly  on  the  shoulder  of  the  helpless  fellow  and 
said:  "You  are  my  pris'ner." 

"He  is  my  prisoner,  sir!"  quietly  answered 
Naomi.  "I  will  answer  for  him  at  court  when 
the  time  comes  or  when  he  is  able  to  be  there." 

"I  beg  your  pardon,  Miss  Slocum,"  returned  the 
blue-coat.  "Very  well.  We  ken  trust  you." 

Not  that  Tony  was  a  favorite  of  Naomi  more 
than  either  of  the  other  bleeding  fellows;  but 
she  just  happened  to  get  to  him  first  and,  finding 
him  badly  wounded,  she  gave  him  her  utmost 
attention,  for  he  bled  profusely  and  the  flow  must 
be  stanched  at  once  or  the  life  lost.  Dr.  Morgan — 
answering  a  call  in  the  direction  of  Maffit's  patch — 


MUTTERINGS  95 

chanced  to  be  passing  The  Anthracite  at  the  time 
of  the  row,  in  company  with  Tom  who  was  on 
his  way  home.  The  two  men  immediately  lent 
their  assistance  to  the  girl — Tom  to  call  an  am- 
bulance and  Evan  to  put  a  temporary  ligature 
near  the  gash.  Both  of  the  other  fellows  were 
more  stunned  than  wounded,  although  blood 
flowed  freely  from  a  slash  over  the  left  eye  of  the 
one  and  a  bullet  hole  through  the  right  forearm 
of  the  other,  who  chanced  to  be  Lawrence  Boland 
and  whom  Tom  assisted  home  where  Dr.  Morgan 
soon  after  dressed  the  wound. 

Lawrence  had  been  one  of  the  last  to  enter 
the  barroom  and  remained  there  more  to  see  the 
fracas  end  than  to  take  an  active  part  in  it.  There- 
fore, on  the  promise  of  Tom  for  Lawrence's  ap- 
pearance in  court,  the  officers  let  the  boy  go 
home.  The  dead  men  were  both  non-union  men, 
one  of  them  a  brother  of  Tony.  There  were  cuts 
and  bruises  on  some  of  those  of  the  other  party 
but  no  one  was  the  wiser  as  to  their  nature  or 
seriousness. 

"Tony  no  good,"  murmured  the  bleeding 
Italian  as  they  hurried  him  along  in  the  ambu- 
lance. "Notta  fitta  for  Missa  Slocum  tech! 
Me  badda  man!  Leava  me  go!" 

"When  you  get  good  care  I  will  let  you  go," 
gently  answered  Naomi,  smoothing  back  the 
raven  hair  from  his  high  forehead. 

"You  a  Holy  Virgin!  Helpa  badda  man! 
Tony  no  good!" 

The  broken  sentences  were  cut  short  by  the 
arrival  of  the  ambulance  at  the  hospital.  There 
he  received  the  needed  attention  and  there  he 


96  A  FAST  GAME 

remained  for  several  weeks  before  being  suffi- 
ciently recovered  to  appear  in  court  or  return 
to  his  family.  Bandelli  had  worked  in  the  Slo- 
cum  mines  ever  since  he  came  to  America — an 
honest  and  industrious  workman  with  a  flash- 
ing temper.  His  native  fire  often  got  him  into 
warm  contests,  especially  in  the  line  of  union- 
ism which  he  bitterly  opposed.  His  heated 
debates  were  as  often  with  his  own  countrymen 
as  with  others.  For  his  radical  views,  as  some 
might  call  them,  and  for  his  seeming  delight 
in  wordy  jousts,  he  became  an  open  target  for 
all  who  took  exception  to  his  opinions.  Withal, 
Tony  Bandelli  circulated  among  the  citizens  of 
Onaway  with  the  reputation  of  a  man  of  sobriety, 
of  friendliness  to  the  friendly,  and  of  dogged  oppo- 
sition to  his  opponents  though  without  treachery 
or  unfairness.  He  advocated  personal  liberty 
but  not  personal  license.  His  employers'  business 
was  as  sacred  to  him  as  his  own;  and  their  lives, 
as  his  life.  He  visited  no  revenge  or  personal 
rancor  upon  anyone,  either  in  person  or  proxy, 
but  said  everything  to  the  face  and  did  every- 
thing in  the  open.  However  much  his  acquaint- 
ances respected  him  and  his  fairness,  they  feared 
him  as  an  open  enemy  because  of  that  unexpected 
fairness;  consequently,  he  often  suffered  intrigue 
and  injustice  at  the  hands  of  his  unseen  foes. 

But  while  the  Italian  lay  in  the  hospital  the 
mutterings  of  the  approaching  contest  grew 
louder  and  louder  and  increased  in  volume  and 
number.  Excessive  unionism  and  over  zealous 
non-unionism  maneuvered  and  scouted  and 
skirmished  for  advantage,  much  as  two  armies 


MUTTERINGS  97 

• 

marshall  their  forces  for  a  deadly  combat.  They 
played  the  game  for  life  and  they  played  the  game 
for  death. 


CHAPTER    VII 

THE    OTHER    SIDE 

While  the  Mine  Workers'  Union  planned  its 
battle  and  recruited  its  ranks  the  other  side  kept 
busy  with  its  defences  and,  perchance,  when 
the  crisal  moment  came,  it  might  be  able  to  do 
aggressive  work  in  the  form  of  a  lockout  or  a 
forward  movement  toward  a  wide  open  shop. 
The  immense  piles  of  coal  stored  along  the  different 
lines  of  railroad  plainly  informed  the  public 
that  the  operators  did  not  sleep  on  their  outposts. 

Of  course,  as  might  be  expected,  nearly  every 
colliery  worked  full  time  and  with  a  full  com- 
plement of  operatives,  while  commercial  pros- 
perity flourished  in  every  line  of  business.  But 
to  a  close  observer,  the  prospects  of  a  permanent 
boom  displayed  only  ill  omens.  Should  the  labor 
organization  strike,  the  other  side  would  be 
ready  for  a  long  seige  without  materially  depre- 
ciating its  stock,  or  hindering  the  accustomed 
transportation  of  general  freight,  or  even  anthra- 
cite for  that  matter. 

And  let  it  be  understood  that  the  railway  trunk 
lines  not  only  handled  nearly  all  the  coal  ship- 
ments, but  their  stockholders  had  practically 
the  same  interests  in  the  ownership  of  the  anthra- 
cite coal  fields  as  they  had  in  the  railroads  them- 
selves— hence,  the  storage  of  the  surplus  output 

98 


THE  OTHER  SIDE  99 

of  coal  and  the  excessive  activity  of  the  employers 
amounted  to  harvesting  the  summer's  abund- 
ance in  anticipation  of  the  winter's  barrenness. 
The  other  side  was  prepared. 

Let  it  be  understood,  further,  that  an  individual 
operator  stands  in  relation  to  the  operators  com- 
bination or  confederacy  the  same  as  the  non- 
union workman  stands  in  relation  to  the  union; 
and  much  the  same  tactics  are  used  for  the  im- 
pressment of  the  individual  into  the  organiza- 
tion on  the  one  side  as  are  used  for  the  same 
purpose  on  the  other.  Boycott,  personal  solic- 
itation, intimidation,  threats,  bribes  and  violence 
constitute  the  principle  weapons  employed  in 
the  bloodless  wars  waged  between  man  and  man, 
man  and  organization,  organization  and  organi- 
zation, and  organization  and  man;  and,  much 
to  the  discredit  of  both  sides,  the  wars  are  not 
always  bloodless. 

The  beginning  of  the  year  found  the  operators 
of  the  whole  anthracite  coal  fields  in  a  joint  session 
at  Onaway.  The  purpose  of  the  meeting  was 
five  fold:  to  increase  their  strength  in  member- 
ship and  capital;  to  form  a  more  perfect  compact 
and  a  more  wieldy  organization;  to  study  the 
strength  and  plans,  as  far  as  possible,  of  the  oppo- 
sition; to  prepare  for  a  lockout  or  a  strike  or 
concessions  and  a  peaceful  agreement  as  the  con- 
tingency might  bring  about  by  the  first  of  April; 
and  to  devise  means  whereby  they  could  buy  out 
the  interests  of  the  anti-combination-individual 
operator  or  drive  him  out  of  business  by  increased 
freight  rates,  boycott  or  otherwise.  The  existing 
corporate  management  held  control  of  the  situ- 
ation, but  did  not  have  everything  it  wanted. 


100  A  FAST  GAME 

Hiram  Slocum  and  his  son,  Henry,  represented 
The  Black  Diamond  Company  in  the  dignified 
assembly  of  the  other  side.  A  son-in-law  of  our 
aged  and  virile  friend,  Uncle  Hiram,  also  held  a 
seat  in  that  body.  Fifteen  years  previous  to  the 
opening  of  our  story  a  grand  wedding  took  place 
at  the  Slocum  mansion,  when  Clarissa,  the  only 
daughter  of  Hiram  Slocum  and  his  wife,  Sarah 
Ann,  became  the  wife  of  Harry  Norwood,  a  cultured 
and  congenial  heir  to  a  considerable  estate,  which 
estate  consisted  partially  of  railway  stocks  and 
partially  of  coal  lands. 

Since  the  marriage,  the  parents  had  died  and 
the  son  had  come  into  his  inheritance.  This  brief 
explanation  accounts  for  Norwood's  presence 
among  the  operators.  Not  that  he  had  earned 
his  seat  among  them  by  assiduous  industry,  shrewd 
business  methods  and  mental  acumen,  because 
these  qualities  were  as  far  from  his  native  or  ac- 
quired characteristics  as  the  east  is  from  the  west. 
That  Harry  Norwood  was  born  into  the  kingdom 
of  social  splendor,  merits  no  more  the  applause 
of  men  than  some  one  else,  who  was  born  into  the 
kingdom  of  social  degradation,  merits  the  disre- 
spect of  public  opinion. 

The  highest  merit  is  to  be  born  into  the  lowest 
social  grade  and  live  up  toward,  and  in,  the 
highest;  the  next  higher,  is  to  be  born  into  the 
highest  grade  and  always  live  in  it  with  a  character 
pure  and  unspotted  from  the  world;  while  the 
greatest  disgrace  is  to  be  born  into  the  kingdom 
of  wealth  and  opportunity,  and  to  sink  to  the 
dregs  of  the  human  aggregation.  Next  to  a  fallen 
angel,  the  most  pitiable  sight  is  a  fallen  man — 
morally  and  socially,  fallen — and  yet,  moving 


THE  OTHER  SIDE  101 

in  society  like  a  forlorn  scarecrow  in  an  autumn 
cornfield,  the  difference  being  that  the  scarecrow 
wears  his  clothes  by  virtue  of  the  position  he 
holds,  while  the  fallen  man  holds  his  position  by 
virtue  of  the  clothes  he  wears. 

If  our  eyes  could  only  see  as  the  Allseeing  eye 
sees,  such  a  man  would  be  as  much  out  of  place 
among  the  pure  four  hundred  as  a  fallen  angel 
in  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  What  has  already 
been  said  does  not  necessarily  exclude  the  said 
Norwood  from  the  first  families  of  Pennsylvania 
though,  it  must  be  admitted,  it  does  insinuate 
that  he  circulated  in  a  questionable  guise.  Be 
that  as  it  may,  he  was  in  attendance  at  the  meet- 
ing of  the  coal  operators  of  northeastern  Penn- 
sylvania and  took  an  active  part  in  the  delibera- 
tions of  the  same. 

Among  the  first  speakers  on  the  floor  after  the 
session  had  opened  for  business  was  Harry  Nor- 
wood. He  began  with:  "Mr.  President — In  this 
country  of  ours  within  the  last  few  years  many 
mobs  of  various  kinds  have  done  their  foul  work 
but,  to  my  mind,  the  most  nefarious  of  all  is  the 
mob  of  organized  labor.  No  man  should  object 
to  any  association,  labor  or  otherwise,  whose 
object  is  for  lawful  and  beneficent  activity.  But 
organized  labor,  as  it  is  conducted  today,  stands 
convicted  by  its  own  overt  acts.  It  resorts  to 
physical  force  to  override  individual  rights,  con- 
stantly rails  at  the  laws  of  the  land  and  the  official 
who  attempts  to  enforce  them,  denounces  the 
courts  for  constitutional  justice,  and,  thereby, 
fulfills  all  the  requirements  of  mobocracy.  Un- 
like the  lynching  bees  and  vigilance  committees, 
it  is  nothing  more  or  less  than  a  standing  mob. 


102  A  FAST  GAME 

"In  its  attempt  to  compel  the  recognition  of  its 
pretentions  to  sovereignty  it  reposes  not  on  reason, 
but  on  coersion,  intimidation  and  the  bludgeon. 
In  its  everlasting  haranguing  against  law  and 
order  and  its  appeal  to  the  baser  passions  of  man, 
it  is  the  principal  agency  for  inculcating  the  mob 
spirit  and  encourages  the  unfurling  of  the  red 
flag  of  anarchy — " 

"Puttin"  it  on  purty  thick,  ain't  ye  Harry?" 
interrupted  Uncle  Hiram.  "Guess  all  the  fire- 
eaters  hain't  skedaddled  into  the  labor  union  no 
more  than  all  the  saints  is  corralled  in  the  opera- 
tors'fold,  be  they?" 

Silence  followed  this  break  and  smiles  played 
around  the  features  of  many  a  well  fed  face.  The 
speaker  hemmed  and  blushed,  at  a  loss  to  know 
just  what  to  do,  till  the  presiding  officer  relieved 
the  embarrassing  situation  by  saying,  "You  may 
speak  when  your  turn  comes,  Mr.  Slocum;  we'll 
be  glad  to  hear  you. — You  have  the  floor,  Mr. 
Norwood." 

"Thank  you,  Mr.  President,"  said  Uncle  Hiram. 
"Excuse  me  for  interrupting;  I  jest  thought, 
bein'  Harry  's  one  o'  my  boys,  I'd  chip  in  a  leetle 
fur  the  good  o'  the  order." 

"During  the  first  year,"  continued  the  speaker, 
"the  attempts  to  compel  men  to  give  allegiance  to 
the  strike  bosses  in  their  schemes  to  establish 
an  oligarchy,  have  festered  mob  conditions  in  many 
of  our  leading  centers  of  industry.  The  supremacy 
of  law  and  order  has  not  only  received  many 
severe  shocks  at  the  hands  of  this  octopas,  but  the 
nation  has  lost  millions  of  dollars  from  the  en- 
forced idleness  of  thousands  of  organized  work- 
men. It  is  time  that  the  breadwinners  of  this 


THE  OTHER  SIDE  103 

country  realized  that  the  investments  in  the 
salaries  of  their  agitators  are  mighty  poor  invest- 
ments, and  that  their  ceaseless  enforced  idleness 
engenders  trouble  and  drains  them  of  the  very 
necessaries  of  life. 

"The  duty  of  the  hour  is  not  to  waste  time 
negotiating  with  the  fomenters  of  this  anarchy 
and  insolent  defiance  of  law,  but  to  do  as  was 
done  in  the  early  sixties,  restore  the  majesty  of 
law,  the  only  guardian  of  a  liberty  loving  people, 
and  re-establish  peace  and  union  at  any  cost. 
The  government  is  a  contemptible  fiasco  if  it 
can  only  protect  the  lives  and  property  and  secure 
the  comforts  of  the  people  by  compromising 
with  the  violators  of  law  and  the  instigators  of 
violence  and  crime. 

"Gentlemen,  just  at  this  moment,  as  it  seems 
to  me,  it  is  more  important  to  teach  ignorant 
men,  who  dwell  among  us  and  who  are  misled 
and  used  as  tools  by  citizens  from  other  states, 
that  at  whatever  cost  and  inconvenience  to 
the  state,  Pennsylvania's  governmental  power 
will  protect  not  only  every  man  who  wants  to 
work,  but  his  family  and  home  while  he  is  at 
work,  and  will  punish  the  man  who,  by  instiga- 
tion or  by  overt  acts,  attempts  to  deprive  another 
of  his  right  to  work." 

At  the  conclusion  of  his  speech  Mr.  Norwood 
took  his  seat  and  Henry  Slocum  came  forward, 
got  the  floor  and  addressed  the  auditors  as  fol- 
lows: "Mr.  President: — I  represent  the  individ- 
ual operators,  I  suppose,  and  whether  I  continue 
as  such  remains  to  be  seen.  I  am  in  sympathy 
with  some  of  the  remarks  of  Mr.  Norwood  and 
not  in  sympathy  with  others  of  them.  In  our 


104  A  FAST  GAME 

mines  we  employ  both  union  and  non-union 
workmen,  the  majority,  non-union  Perhaps, 
because  we  are  not  in  the  trust,  as  we  might  say, 
that  class  of  men  would  come  to  us  in  preference 
to  some  of  your  mines.  But  this  one  thing  I  do 
know,  that  the  easiest  class  to  get  along  with 
is  that  of  the  non-union  fellows  though  they  are 
daily  annoyed  and  nagged  by  the  union  men 
to  join  them  and  so  consolidate  laboring  men 
in  order  to  demand  and  get  all  their  desires  as 
well  as  rights.  If  I  had  my  way  about  it  I  would 
employ  only  non-union  men." 

"You're  honest,  Hen,  to  own  the  corn,  but  ye 
know  that  ain't  the  square  deal  to  ev'ry  chap," 
broke  in  his  father. 

The  speaker  paid  no  atteniton  to  the  remark 
but  respectfully  continued  as  if  nothing  had 
happened.  "Men  do  not  all  think  alike  any 
more  than  they  all  look  alike,  likewise,  there  are 
those  who  will  join  the  union  as  there  are  those 
who  will  not,  and  no  power  on  earth  can  compel 
some  of  the  latter  class  to  join  it.  Therefore, 
if  human  nature  is  so  stubborn,  and  we  all  have 
our  vein  of  stubbornness  more  or  less,  why  will 
one  man  stand  over  another  with  a  club  and 
attempt  to  force  him  to  do  that  which  is  against 
his  will  and  conscience? 

"Then,  too,  there  are  other  men  who  do  not 
want  to  join  the  union,  but,  either  because  they 
are  too  timid  to  stand  for  their  convictions  or 
too  easily  influenced  by  personal  persuasion,  do 
finally  become  members  of  the  organization  in 
which  their  sympathies  are  not  merged,  become 
victims  of  radical  leaders  and  believe  what  others 
tell  them  without  investigating  for  themselves. 


THE  OTHER  SIDE  105 

And  when  it  comes  to  the  election  of  officers  in 
the  union  their  votes  help  to  swing  the  majority 
on  the  side  of  the  agitator. 

"Now,  as  to  the  thousands  of  idle  organized 
men  mentioned  by  the  speaker  who  preceded 
me  I  have  this  much  to  say:  they  are  idle  either 
from  their  own  choice  or  through  the  selfishness 
and  power  of  their  leaders;  and  they  will  not 
only  not  work  themselves,  but,  like  the  dog  in 
the  manger,  will  not  let  anyone  else  work.  For 
such  men  I  would  most  sincerely  advocate  calling 
out  the  federal  troops  or  at  least  sufficient  power 
to  suppress  their  unlawful  practices  on  others. 
If  you  offend  anyone  of  the  organization  a  hor- 
net's nest  is  stirred  up  immediately,  and  the 
whole  swarm  pounces  upon  you  without  mercy. 
I  would  not  mind  that  so  much  if  there  was  any 
reason  for  it.  Not  long  ago  we  discovered  one 
of  our  petty  bosses  discriminating  between  union 
and  non-union  employes,  exceeding  his  authority 
over  some  of  the  workmen,  and,  what  is  worse, 
appropriating  tools  and  mine  supplies  and  dis- 
posing of  them  at  a  nice  little  personal  profit. 

"When  the  matter  came  to  us  and  we  posi- 
tively knew  that  he  was  dishonest,  we  promptly 
discharged  him.  We  received  letters  in  less  than 
thirty-six  hours  from  labor  leaders  requesting 
us  to  restore  him  to  his  former  position  or  the 
other  union  men  would  be  called  out  of  our  mines. 
We  ignored  the  demand  and  nothing  has  been 
done  about  the  matter  since. 

"Now,  the  only  danger  of  the  operators'  union 
is  that  instead  of  simply  protecting  ourselves 
from  the  tyranny  of  the  labor  union,  we  exceed 
our  rights  also  and  coerce  them  as  they  are  trying 


106  A  FAST  GAME 

to  coerce  us.  They  are  spoiling  for  a  fight  and 
should  we  form  a  perfect  compact,  the  next 
step  would  be  to  accommodate  them  in  the 
battle.  We  all  know  how  stubborn  each  of  us 
is  if  another  tries  to  force  him  against  his  will — 
not  only  stubborn  but  selfish  and  retaliatory. 
Should  the  battle  between  labor-unionism  and 
capital-unionism  be  set  in  array  and  fought 
to  a  finish,  who  would  be  the  victor  when  the 
smoke  cleared  away?  Would  we  gain  or  lose  in 
the  general  average?  I  tell  you,  it's  a  mighty 
precarious  game  to  play." 

No  sooner  had  Mr.  Slocum  taken  his  seat  than 
another  operator  was  on  his  feet  and  began  a 
heated  refutation  of  the  arguments  advanced  by 
his  predecessor  on  the  floor. 

"Mr.  President,"  he  began,  "I  am  not  in  favor 
of  pursuing  any  such  easy  measures  in  dealing 
with  the  Mine  Workers'  Union  as  the  speaker 
who  just  took  his  seat,  and,  what  is  more,  the 
company,  whose  interests  are  intrusted  to  me 
at  this  committee  meeting,  will  favor  no  scheme 
that  will  place  these  red-handed  desperadoes  on 
an  equal  basis  with  law-abiding  citizens.  It 
has  been  decided  on  good  authority  that  the 
organization  is  illegal,  and,  therefore,  I  hand  in 
this  resolution."  He  here  read  the  resolution 
which  is  as  follows: 

"Resolved,  that  we,  the  anthracite  operators 
of  northeastern  Pennsylvania,  in  convention  as- 
sembled, do  ask  that  the  civil  branch  of  the  United 
States  government  taking  cognizance  of  and  follow- 
ing the  decisions  of  its  courts  rendered  in  litiga- 
tion growing  out  of  previous  similar  conditions, 
at  once  institute  proceedings  against  the  illegal 


THE  OTHER  SIDE  107 

organization  known  as  the  Mine  Workers'  Union, 
its  well-known  officers,  agents  and  members,  to 
enjoin  and  restrain  permanently  it  and  them  from 
continuing  this  organization,  and  requiring  them 
to  desist  immediately  from  conspiring,  conniving, 
aiding  or  abetting  the  outlawry  and  intolerable 
conditions  in  the  anthracite  regions  for  which 
they  and  they  alone  are  responsible." 

"Purty  middlin'  hash  measures,  Mr.  President," 
said  Hiram  Slocum,  as  he  slowly  rose  from  his 
chair.  His  eyes  flashed  the  fire  of  opposition, 
and  the  occasional  thumping  of  his  cane  on  the 
floor  manifest  the  purturbed  condition  of  the  old 
man's  feelings,  though  he  spoke  calmly  and  with- 
out trembling  of  voice,  except  the  tremor  naturally 
due  to  old  age. 

"I  don't  s'pose  I  could  vote  on  this  bill  if  I 
wanted  to,  fur  I'm  not  in  the  combine  yet,  but  if 
I  could  vote,  I'd  vote  ag'in  it  ev'ry  time.  If  we 
should  try  to  push  that  thing  through,  we'd  be 
usin'  the  same  weapons  our  well  meanin'  brother, 
who  jest  took  his  seat,  had  been  complainin' 
about  that  they  use  on  us.  If  this  'ere  thing  's 
goin'  to  be  a  duel  to  death,  why,  there's  no  harm 
in  each  feller  havin'  the  same  weapon.  If  there 
was  only  two  chaps  ingaged  in  the  fracas  an'  they 
was  bound  to  fight,  I'd  give  'em  the  shootin'  irons 
and  say,  'Pitch  in  an'  have  it  out,  boys!'  But 
there's  more  'n  two  mixed  up  in  the  rumpus. 
There's  you  fellers  and  us  fellers,  the  union  an' 
the  non-union,  an'  we  make  a  very  le.etle  showin' 
when  compared  with  the  other  fellers  we  call 
consumers  or  spectators  who  watch  the  game. 
An'  if  we  all  got  into  a  reg'lar  ruction,  wouldn't 
we  make  a  purty  pictur'  for  the  fureign  nations 


108  A  FAST  GAME 

to  look  at?  to  set  on  the  international  fence  an' 
laugh  at?  Our  repitation  is  too  good  to  spile  by 
sech  animal  actions.  It  makes  my  old  New 
England  pride  raise  an"  my  blood  bile  to  think  o' 
doin'  sech  a  thing  as  that. 

"Now  one  wrong  to  offset  another  wrong  ain't 
fair  play  when  it's  tit  fur  tat  betwixt  two.  That 
ain't  even  'an  eye  fur  an  eye,  an'  a  tooth  fur  a 
tooth.'  Fur  that  law  don't  mean  that  if  the  other 
feller  knocked  your  eye  out,  you  had  a  right  to 
knock  his  eye  out.  To  try  that  game  ye  might 
git  the  other  eye  knocked  out,  too.  Mind  ye, 
in  the  old  law  the  third  party  plucked  out  the 
eyes  an'  pulled  the  teeth  of  the  offenders.  An' 
my  opinion  about  this  'ere  row  we're  in  now  is 
that  we'd  better  be  adjourned  to  a  higher  court- 
fur  a  decision,  before  either  side  tries  to  git  the 
other  feller's  teeth  pulled  fust. 

"There's  a  judge  before  who  we'll  all  give  an 
account  an'  if  t'other  feller  gits  his  desarts,  an' 
he  will,  why,  let  the  just  judge  give  'em  to  'im. 
The  line  of  cleavage  in  society  ain't  between  the 
farmer  an'  the  banker,  betwixt  capital  an'  labor, 
the  rich  an'  the  poor,  an'  betwixt  one  organiza- 
tion an'  another,  but,  to  simmer  it  down  to  the 
pint,  the  line's  betwixt  the  moral  an'  the  im- 
moral, the  honest  an'  the  dishonest.  That  brings 
the  dicker  right  down  betwixt  man  an'  man  an' 
not  betwixt  class  an'  class,  fur  in  ev'ry  class, 
except  the  invisible  church  of  God,  there's  scala- 
wags big  an'  there's  scalawags  small.  An'  when 
we  deal  with  'em  on  the  square,  we  deal  with  'em 
one  by  one  eev'ry  time,  an'  not  putter  'round 
with  a  hull  lot  of  'em  together.  There  was  a 
time  when  I  thought  I  could  flop  anybody  o'  my 


THE  OTHER  SIDE  109 

heft  in  the  country — an'  I'm  not  braggin'  when  I 
say  I  was  never  yit  put  on  my  back  by  any  one 
raster — but  now  it's  'bout  all  I  ken  muckle  to  keep 
off  my  back.  I  ain't  so  rambunctious  now.  But 
in  these  four  score  year  I've  learned  a  thing  er 
two. 

"In  them  days  nobody  could  rub  it  on  very 
thick  'fore  they'd  hear  frum  me  an'  in  a  way  that 
would  make  'em  peeunk,  too,  but  I  see  different 
now.  Times  is  changed  some  but  the  truth  an' 
right  ain't  changed  a  mite,  ner  they  wont  nuther." 
The  old  man  hesitated  a  moment.  The  expres- 
sion of  his  eyes  denoted  reflection.  His  mind 
swept  toe  past,  the  present  and  the  future  at  a 
glance  while  the  moisture  trickled  its  winding 
way  down  through  the  wrinkles  of  age  and  integ- 
rity. 

"Boys,  when  ye  git  to  the  summit  o'  this  life 
you'll  see  the  right  standard.  It's  not  the  stand- 
ard o'  occupation,  er  social  repitation  but  the 
standard  o'  conduct.  How  ye  behave  yerself  as 
a  man  is  what  counts  in  the  long  run.  As  I  see 
frum  my  heith — an'  you'll  give  way  to  an  old 
man — the  ins  an'  outs,  the  ups  an'  downs,  an' 
the  rights  an'  wrongs  o'  life,  call  'em  any  high- 
falutin'  name  ye  please;  I  say,  when  these  things 
is  bilt  down  to  the  gen'ine  article  an'  sugared  off 
to  the  clear  quill,  you've  got  love,  pure  an'  simple 
love,  that  '11  stay  by  ye,  love  that  is  sweeter  than 
the  honey  an'  the  honeycomb.  If  we  all  had 
brotherly  love  these  hard  sums  would  do  them- 
selves. 

"But  I  know  we  ain't  all  got  that  scarce  piece 
o'  goods.  Some  lack  it  because  they  don't  want 
it;  others  lack  it  because  they  don't  know  what 


110  A  FAST  GAME 

it  is;  an'  there's  a  few  of  us,  that  would  like  to 
have  ev'rybody  else  git  it  an'  we  go  scot  free. 
What's  sass  fur  the  goose  is  sass  fur  the  gander. 
This  human  won't  mix  with  nothin'  so's  to  not 
leave  a  bad  taste  in  the  mouth.  Ye  can't  thin  it 
ner  ye  can't  thicken  it.  I  call  it  the  balancin' 
power.  Now  Rooshy,  that  is,  her  rulers,  coveted 
the  arth  an'  was  goin'  to  git  it  regardless  o'  her 
peasant  class  specially  an'  the  nations  o'  the 
world  in  general;  that  was  her  license:  when 
she  got  walloped,  as  she  desarved,  them  peasants 
turned  round  an'  walloped  'er  ag'in;  that  was 
their  license. 

"Now  don't  you  think  that  if  them  two  classes 
in  Rooshy  had  balanced  up  things  a  leetle,  played 
give  an'  take  with  the  honey  o'  life,  played  the 
game  fair,  that  they'd  ben  a  hull  lot  better  off 
all  around?  That's  our  object  lesson.  The  coal 
miners  has  organized  ag'in  us  an'  struck;  that's 
their  license.  Now  if  we  git  huffy  an'  organize  an' 
strike  back  that'll  be  our  license,  but  there's  no 
honey  in  it. 

"We  ought  to  know  better  an'  set  a  better  ex- 
ample, bein's  we  are  considered  in  better  circum- 
stances than  them.  Let's  balance  the  account 
with  the  miners.  Set  'em  a  good  example  by 
takin'  'em  into  our  confidence  an'  dealin'  with 
ev'ry  man  alike.  If  we  organize,  we're  apt  to 
defend  our  wrongs  instid  o'  our  rights,  but  when 
we  stan'  alone  we  ken  defend  our  own  rights. 
I  prefer  to  deal  man  to  man  as  our  great  labor 
Leader  dealt  with  the  fishermen,  an'  the  ruler  an' 
the  lame  an'  the  halt  an'  the  blind ;  therefore,  The 
Black  Di'mond  Comp'ny  won't  jine  the  union. 


THE  OTHER  SIDE  111 

We  don't  do  business  with  no  class  but  we  do 
deal  with  any  man." 

A  hush  fell  on  the  convention  when  their  "old 
man  eloquence"  resumed  his  seat.  It  was  not  so 
much  what  he  had  said  that  impressed  them  but 
what  he  had  always  done.  He  was  a  living  ex- 
ample of  the  doctrine  he  advocated.  His  life 
spoke  even  louder  than  his  words.  However, 
the  operators  gradually  recovered  themselves, 
continued  the  meeting  and  adjourned  sine  die. 
The  consensus  of  opinion  favored  a  lockout  unless 
the  miners  came  to  the  terms  of  the  operators. 
The  operators  wanted  to  deal  the  cards. 


CHAPTER    VIII 

INTIMIDATION 

While  the  stirring  question  of  the  hour — 
whether  or  not  there  would  be  a  strike  of  the 
anthracite  coal  miners,  the  probabilities  and 
the  results  of  a  strike  or  a  lockout  or  neither — 
was  on  every  tongue,  the  pulpit  naturally  and 
properly  took  a  hand  in  the  game  and  applied 
the  principles  of  the  divine  Master  to  the  amicable 
settlement  of  all  clashes  between  man  and  man, 
and  especially  did  it  discuss  the  momentous 
question  of  Capital  and  Labor  then  pending 
before  the  public. 

Among  other  ministers  of  the  Gospel  in  the 
city,  who  instructed  their  flocks  on  the  present 
and  personal  application  of  the  Golden  Rule, 
none  was  more  fair  in  his  opinions,  more  script- 
ural in  his  application,  clearer  in  his  thought,  more 
frank  in  his  statements,  and  sweeter  and  more 
persuasive  in  his  appeal,  than  the  Rev.  H.  C. 
Needman,  pastor  of  the  First  Methodist  Episco- 
pal Church  in  Onaway.  One  Sunday  morning 
after  he  had  delivered  himself  of  a  masterly  address 
on  the  burning  question  of  the  day,  had  con- 
gratulated himself  that  he  had  finally  solved 
the  problem  in  justice  to  all  parties  concerned, 
and  had  put  on  his  overcoat  to  walk  home,  he 
was  accosted  in  the  vestibule  of  the  church  by 

112 


INTIMIDATION  113 

Harry  Norwood  with  words  something  to  this 
effect: 

"Look  here  a  minute,  elder,  if  you  have  the 
time;  I  want  to  speak  with  you  privately  for 
just  a  moment." 

Now  Harry  was  a  member  of  the  church — 
whether  in  good  standing  or  not  we  let  the  reader 
judge  for  himself — and  on  excellent  terms  with 
his  pastor.  As  one  would  expect,  therefore, 
the  reverend  gentleman  fraternally  took  his 
parish  oner  by  the  arm,  drew  him  aside  from  the 
few  who  yet  remained  in  the  auditorium  of  the 
church  and  replied  with  this  cordial  word:  "Why, 
certainly,  brother  Norwood;  you  may  have  me 
for  a  minute  or  for  an  hour,  if  you  like." 

"Why — a,  what  I  was  going  to  say — a — " 
wisely  and  fawningly  began  the  interviewer  who 
had  gotten  beyond  earshot  of  the  public,  "I 
was — now,  of  course,  I  am  not  dictating  what 
you  shall  preach  or  what  you  shall  not  preach, 
and  this  is  a  friendly  conversation  between  man 
and  man.  I  liked  your  sermon  this  morning, 
in  the  main,  but  being  an  operator,"  and  a  sickly 
smile  sauntered  over  his  features,  "and  in  direct 
touch  with  all  phases  of  our  dealings  and  de- 
mands, I  thought  you  would  not  object  to  a 
few  pointers  that,  perhaps,  you  in  your  position 
had  not  observed." 

"Thank  you,  brother,  for  your  compliment 
and  for  the  frankness  you  manifest,"  pleasantly 
responded  the  divine.  "I  will  only  be  too  glad 
to  gain  any  information  from  you  at  first  hand. 
My  object  is  to  be  fair  and  try  to  see  as  others 
see  from  their  standpoint." 

Put  more  at  ease  by  this  cordial  reception  of 


114  A  FAST  GAME 

his  proposition,  Norwood  continued:  "For  you 
to  say  that  the  operators  are  retaliating  with 
the  same  selfish  weapons  as  the  miners'  union  is 
using,  may  sound  well  to  many  individuals  and 
may  appear  well  on  paper,  but  it  is  not  in  har- 
mony with  the  facts  in  the  case.  In  the  first 
place  the  principle  is  not  advantageous  from  an 
operator's  standpoint  nor  would  its  application 
be  practical  in  the  business  and  social  constit- 
uency, and  I  will  tell  you  why.  For  us  to  use 
the  same  selfish  weapons  as  the  miners  are  using — 

"Did  I  say,  'the  same  selfish  weapons?'  "  in- 
terrupted the  elder. 

"Why — a,  yes,  or  words  to  that  effect." 

"This  is  what  I  said,  brother:  'The  operators 
are  retaliating  with  selfish  weapons,  the  same  as 
the  union  is  doing.'  ' 

"It  all  amounts  to  the  same  thing,  practically." 

"Oh,  no!  At  least  I  did  not  mean  it  in  that 
way;  but  I  did  mean  to  say  that  both  miners 
and  operators  are  using  selfish  weapons.  They 
are  not  the  same,  though  the  principle  involved 
is  the  same." 

"You  do  not  comprehend  the  situation  from 
our  point  of  view.  If  we  encouraged  and  prac- 
ticed intimidation,  black  hand  secrecy,  mob 
violence  and  depredation  as  they  do,  it  would 
be  nothing  short  of  inviting  in  the  reign  of  anarchy 
and  chaos.  They  stand  for  everything  that 
destroys  while  we  stand  for  constructive  prin- 
ciples." 

"Constructive,  according  to  your  own  ideas, 
but  widely  differing  from  those  of  the  unionist. 
His  opinion  from  his  position  is  as  good  as  your 
opinion  from  your  position." 


INTIMIDATION  115 

"It  is  impossible  and  unjust  to  compare  them 
with  us  in  any  way.  There  is  nothing  in  common 
with  them  and  us  any  more  than  there  is  between 
hell  and  heaven.  They  would  rob  us  of  our 
rights  and  legitimate  increase  in  our  business  to 
satisfy  their  own  greed  for  personal  profits  and 
power.  They  are  selfish,  regardless  of  the  sacri- 
fice entailed  on  us.  They  demand  an  increase 
of  wages  and  a  decrease  of  hours." 

"And  you  demand  a  decrease  of  wages  and  an 
increase  of  hours,  the  same  principle  though 
not  the  same  weapon." 

By  this  time  Mr.  Norwood's  sabbatic  composure 
evidenced  signs  of  perturbation.  The  color  of 
a  Crimson  Rambler  flushed  his  face  and  the 
sense  of  defeat  agitated  his  already  nervous 
condition. 

"Now,  see  here,  elder,  you  perfectly  under- 
stand my  position  in  the  city  and  my  financial  and 
social  status  in  this  church." 

"Perfectly,  brother  Norwood;  and  your  re- 
ligious status,  too." 

"My  advice  to  you,  is  to  go  slow  in  your  pulpit 
utterances  in  regard  to  the  operators  of  whose 
interests  you  know  but  little,  or  you  will  feel  their 
influence  in  a  way  that  will  not  be  agreeable  to 
you." 

"Now,  you  see  here,"  earnestly,  though  friendly, 
put  in  the  pastor  of  the  First  church,  as  he  looked 
his  opponent  square  in  the  eye,  "You  insinuated 
a  moment  ago  that  the  unionists  did  all  the  in- 
timidating. What  are  you  doing  now  but  trying 
to  influence  me  to  hush  up  wrong  on  your  side 
for  a  few  paltry  dollars  and  a  little  social  flattery  ? 
Please  understand  that  neither  you  nor  any  other 


116  A  FAST  GAME 

man  can  modify  my  pulpit  enunciations  or  de- 
nunciations which  I  consider  in  harmony  with 
what  is  commonly  called,  The  Holy  Scriptures. 
I  will  sacrifice  neither  my  conscience  nor  my  con- 
victions for  anything  I  deem  contrary  to  the  Word 
of  God." 

"You  know  that  my  pew  is  one  of  the  best  in 
the  church  and  my  family  relations  carry  weight 
in  the  official  board.  If  you  will  be  so  unwise  as 
to  continue  to  flaunt  your  invectives  against  the 
conservative  and  substantial  element  of  the 
church,  why,  you  will  have  to  suffer  the  conse- 
quences, that's  all!" 

"Let  us  be  frank,  brother  Norwood,"  pleasantly 
continued  the  dominie  as  a  pitying  smile  spread 
over  his  handsome  features — pity  for  the  deluded 
man  before  him;  "I  understand  your  relation 
with  the  Slocum  family,  the  backbone  of  the 
church,  and  I  also  know  that  your  influence  with 
them  would  be  lost  in  a  child's  thimble;  and, 
furthermore,  the  sooner  you  discontinue  courting 
such  uncharitable  business  principles  as  you  are 
now  advocating,  the  better  it  will  be  for  your 
spiritual  welfare.  Won't  you  come  over  to  my 
study  and  have  a  word  of  prayer  with  me?" 

The  irate  coal  operator  could  not  stand  that 
kind  of  fire.  Burning  with  anger  and  chagrin,  he 
turned  on  his  heel  and  strode  out  of  the  building, 
sarcastically  flinging  back  through  his  blue  lips, 
"No,  thank  you;  I'll  pray  with  no  bigot  and 
support  no  fanatic." 

The  room  was  empty.  The  dignified  pastor 
knelt  beside  one  of  the  pews  and  threw  back  the 
curtains  of  his  heart's  window  that  faced  toward 
Calvary.  The  light  immediately  streamed  in. 


INTIMIDATION  117 

He  rose  with  moisture  in  his  eyes  and  the  con- 
sciousness of  triumph  and  right  in  his  bosom.  In 
that  frame  of  mind  he  hurried  home  to  find  his 
wife  and  her  brother,  Oscar  Morgan,  chatting 
pleasantly  together  and  waiting  dinner  for  him. 
The  trio  at  once  repaired  to  the  diningroom  and 
partook  of  their  light  Sunday  luncheon.  Oscar 
often  dropped  in  of  an  evening  or  a  Sunday  after- 
noon and  spent  an  hour  or  two  with  them.  Today 
they  passed  the  midday  meal  delightfully  and 
shoved  back  from  the  table  satisfied  in  the  inner 
man. 

The  sister  and  wife  excused  herself  and  went 
up  to  her  room  for  her  siesta.  The  gentlemen 
retired  to  the  sitting  room  and  began  to  chat 
in  their  old  time  friendly  and  informal  manner 
when  Oscar,  his  brothet-in-law  and  member 
of  his  church,  broached  to  the  minister  the  sub- 
ject of  the  morning  discourse. 

"Well,  what  was  the  matter  with  it?"  enquired 
the  preacher. 

"Why — a,  it  was  first  rate,  but  don't  you  think 
you  gave  it  to  us  labor  unionists  pretty  strong, 
yes,  and  unjustly,  I  may  add?" 

The  wary  man  of  the  cloth  lounged  on  the 
couch  and  with  half  shut  eyes  and  drawling  voice 
made  answer.  "I  hope  not,  Oscar.  I  did  not 
intend  to  be  unjust.  What  did  I  say  that  gave 
you  that  impression?"  and  he  snuggled  down  into 
the  heap  of  sofa  pillows  about  his  head. 

"When  you  said  that  the  union  was  a  feeder  to 
the  mob  spirit,  a  menace  to  law  and  order  and  a 
sprag  in  the  wheels  of  industry." 

"Well,  what  about  it?"     Deeper  into  the  pillows. 

"There  is  this  about  it;    it  ain't  so.     Did  not 


118  A  FAST  GAME 

John  Wesley's  preachin'  stir  up  mobs  and  law- 
lessness?" 

"To  be  sure."     Still  deeper  into  the  pillows. 

"And  didn't  permanent  prosperity  result  from 
the  agitation?" 

"Yes,  most  assuredly."  Anything  but  sleep 
among  the  pillows. 

"And  didn't  the  Master  stir  up  the  mob  spirit? 
I  contend  that  this  kind  of  agitation  that  we're 
doing,  though  I  do  not  approve  of  open  violence, 
to  be  what  will  arouse  the  thinkin'  classes  to  sense 
their  duty  and  bring  about  permanent  industrial 
prosperity  and  a  reformation  of  the  civil  and 
moral  laws  as  much  as  the  reformation  instituted 
by  our  Lord  or  by  John  Wesley." 

The  pillows  scattered  like  a  bevy  of  quail.  The 
pretender  was  very  much  awake,  sitting  up  with 
both  eyes  wide  open,  and,  with  a  light  laugh, 
spoke  in  the  popular  phrase  of  the  times:  "Why, 
Oscar,  you're  way  up  in  the  air.  You  can  no 
more  compare  your  work  with  that  of  Wesley's 
than  you  can  compare  the  running  of  a  locomotive 
with  driving  a  mine  mule.  In  the  first  place,  you 
have  wrested  my  pulpit  statement  from  its  context. 
When  you  add  to  your  statement  the  remainder 
of  my  statement — 'Unless  the  leaders  and  agita- 
tors are  controlled  by  a  Divine  power' — you  have 
my  meaning  and  I  stand  by  it  yet. 

"When  Wesley  and  our  Master  incited  mobs 
they  presented  something  to  fill  the  heart  as  well 
as  the  mind,  but  when  capital  and  labor  clash, 
each  gives  enough  to  fill  the  mind  of  the  other, 
while,  on  the  other  hand,  each  fills  his  own  heart 
with  hatred  and  selfishness  toward  the  other. 
Jesus  conquered  the  mob  by  His  love  and  His 


INTIMIDATION  119 

life.  Peter  wanted  to  go  at  them  with  a  sword. 
The  Peters  and  the  Judases  are  the  ones  who  raise 
the  devil.  Peter  was  a  loyal  defender  of  his  cause 
at  any  price;  Judas  was  an  agitator  for  the  price 
he  got.  Peter  had  to  recant  before  he  became  a 
( loyal  member  of  his  Master's  cause,  but  Judas  was 
'too  stubborn  to  allow  himself  the  same  privilege. 
I  understand  that  you  have  the  position  of  solicitor 
and  agitator  in  the  union  now.  Be  careful  how 
you  use  your  authority." 

"I'll  'tend  to  me  own  loaf  without  any  theo- 
logical leaven  to  raise  it.  You  measure  every- 
thing with  your  biblical  yardstick  an'  yer  about 
as  consistent  with  the  use  of  it  as  a  grocer  would 
be,  who  sold  his  molasses  by  the  yard.  You 
haven't  the  faintest  conception  of  what  the 
miner  receives  at  the  hand  of  the  oppressive 
operators  an'  fur  you  to  avow  from  the  pulpit 
the  assertions  that  ye  did  this  morning  do  be  a 
disgrace  to  your  profession  an'  an  open  confes- 
sion o'  yer  ignorance.  You  may  know  something 
about  the  Scriptures  but  ye  do  be  an  ignoramus 
concerning  the  economic  principles  o'  the  labor 
problem." 

The  lion,  having  become  thoroughly  aroused, 
rose  to  his  feet  and  shook  himself  for  the  finish. 
With  his  magnificent  personality  under  perfect 
control  and  his  voice  clear  and  musical  he  began: 

"We  are  not  going  to  argue  this  question  any 
longer,  nor  are  we  going  to  get  excited  over  the 
matter.  As  your  pastor,  and  from  a  sense  of 
duty,  I  must  inform  you  of  a  few  things  that  I 
do  know  and  I  apologize  to  you  for  not  having 
the  courage  to  tell  you  before.  You  remember 
that  fatal  row  over  in  The  Anthracite  a  few 


120  A  FAST  GAME 

weeks  ago.  Had  it  not  been  for  my  influence 
in  the  Municipal  League  you  would  have  been 
fetched  up  for  the  part  you  played  in  the  fray. 
Had  it  not  been  for  your  agitation,  the  disgrace- 
ful event  would  not  have  occurred. 

"When  I  found  out  that  you  were  in  the  saloon 
at  the  time,  I  was  mortified  and  humbled  to 
think  that  a  member  of  my  church  would  bring 
reproach  upon  the  cause  of  Christ  by  affiliating 
with  such  a  class  and  in  such  a  place  and  be  the 
chief  entertainer  of  the  evening.  Mary  don't 
know  anything  about  it  yet.  I  know  she  would 
be  heartbroken  to  find  it  out.  Dick  gives  her 
enough  occasion  for  anxiety  without  knowing 
that  her  pet  brother  is  following  in  the  same 
road,  though  more  under  cover." 

An  occasional  tear  trickled  down  the  cheek 
of  the  divine  as  he  spoke,  and  his  voice  had  a 
noticeable  pathetic  quaver.  His  whole  bearing 
indicated  the  deepest  solicitude  for  the  brother 
before  him.  "Now,  Oscar,  for  your  own  good, 
the  good  of  your  position,  both  in  the  labor  union 
and  the  church,  keep  away  from  the  saloons 
and  speak  more  on  the  line  of  arbitration  and 
less  on  that  of  agitation." 

"You  seem  to  know  so  much  about  me  business 
and  me  whereabouts,  I  wonder  how  you'd  con- 
trol the  drinkin'  class  o'  the  miners  if  ye  didn't 
go  to  their  haunts,"  said  Oscar  with  a  dogged 
insinuation.  "You  don't  understand  the  posi- 
tion of  the  brow-beaten  laborin'  class  in  the 
least.  They'd  go  crazy  if  the  saloon  didn't  fur- 
nish a  relief  from  their  hardships.  And  there's 
where  you  ought  to  go  to  influence  'em  to  a  better 
life  an'  better  circumstances." 


INTIMIDATION  121 

"Not  to  drink  with  them  and  incite  them  to 
violence,  though." 

"Who  said  I  drank  with  em'?"  quickly  snapped 
Oscar. 

"I  did  not  say  that  anyone  said  you  did,  but 
you  know  that  you  did,  and  after  the  treat,  you 
were  introduced  by  Ed  Slocum  as  the  speaker 
of  the  evening.  Ed's  influence  seems  to  hold  a 
magic  spell  on  you.  Is  that  leadership  on  your 
part?" 

"I  want  you  to  understand  that  we  do  be  in  this 
game  to  win,  an'  I'll  go  to  the  saloons  or  any- 
where else  I  please  to  recruit  our  forces,  and, 
what's  more,  we  do  be  going  to  win  out  over  the 
grindin'  o'  the  operators.  And  as  a  warnin'  to 
you,  a  friend  an'  brother-in-law,  ye  must  be 
less  radical  in  yer  preachin'  hereafter  or  ye'll 
incur  the  ill  will  o'  the  union  and  then,  perhaps, 
ye'll  know  somethin'  o'  its  power." 

"Do  you  mean  to  say  that  I  must  preach  ac- 
cording to  the  whims  of  the  Mine  Workers'  Union?" 

"No,  I  didn't  say  so,"  hesitatingly  answered 
Oscar,  "but  words  to  that  effect.  You  know 
that  the  majority  of  your  official  board  are  union 
men  and  what  the  majority  o'  the  board  says, 
goes.  Your  financial  support  comes  largely  from 
them,  too.  An'  besides,  if  you  insist  on  followin' 
the  course  ye  marked  out  this  morning,  there'll 
be  other  influences,  brought  to  bear  on  ye  besides 
the  church  influences.  Not  that  I'll  do  nothin' 
o'  the  sort  but  I  give  ye  fair  warnin',  as  a  friend. 
I  ain't  able  to  control  all  the  union  forces." 

"Look  here,  Oscar,  you  are  using  the  carnal 
weapons  of  the  world  to  intimidate  me  to  preach 
a  lopsided  Gospel  to  suit  a  few,  or  a  certain  clique. 


122  A  FAST  GAME 

What  kind  of  spiritual  pabulum  would  that  be 
for  all  classes?  I  would  sooner  go  to  heaven 
with  dynamite  under  my  house  and  my  duty 
done  to  God,  than  to  walk  the  streets  of  Onaway 
as  a  pet  of  a  certain  class  and  in  ill  favor  with  God 
Almighty.  You  better  save  your  words.  You 
know  just  where  I  stand  and  where  I  live.  My 
throne  is  yonder  pulpit  and  there  I  shall  reign 
as  a  free  servant  of  God  and  preach  the  Gospel 
to  all  men,  at  least,  to  as  many  as  will  stay  in 
the  pews  to  hear  me,  union,  non-union,  operators 
or  consumers,  so  long  as  I  am  physically  able 
and  the  Conference  sees  fit  to  keep  me  here." 

"Of  course,  it's  immaterial  to  me  what  ye 
preach  but  there  do  be  others  what  don't  think 
so.  I  simply  want  to  put  ye  on  yer  guard.  No 
one  can  tell  just  what  will  happen  in  these  tryin' 
times,"  as  he  arose  to  put  on  his  overcoat.  "I 
thought  it  best  to  have  an  understandin'  with 
ye  so  you  might  know  what  to  expect." 

"Well,  I'm  glad  you  brought  this  question  to 
my  mind.  I  think  I  understand  your  position 
and  I  hope  you  understand  mine.  Come  up 
again,"  and  the  front  door  of  the  parsonage  closed 
behind  the  union  agitator. 

The  minister  returned  to  the  sitting  room, 
kneeled  by  the  side  of  the  couch  for  a  moment, 
rose  and  buried  his  head  again  in  the  pillows, 
his  body  under  the  slumber  robe,  and  was  soon 
breathing  heavily  in  the  arms  of  Morpheus. 
While  the  golden  pencilling  of  the  winter's  setting 
sun  danced  on  the  walls  of  the  room,  the  dominie's 
eyes  opened  and  looked  up  into  the  smiling  face 
of  his  wife.  A  few  minuets  of  affectionate  cooing 
followed  before  the  happy  pair  separated;  the 


INTIMIDATION  123 

one  to  the  Epworth  League,  the  other  to  his 
study.  The  evening  service  passed  without  in- 
cident of  note — save  the  conversion  of  a  union 
and  a  non-union  man  at  the  altar,  an  incident 
recorded  in  the  Lamb's  Book  of  Life — and  by 
eleven  o'clock  Needman's  pulpit  fever  had  sub- 
sided, his  nervous  tension  had  relaxed,  and  a 
soporific  quietus  had  hushed  the  realm  of  the 
pastoral  mansion. 

Among  the  letters  in  his  Monday  morning  mail 
the  clergyman  found  one  postmarked,  Onaway. 
He  hastily  broke  the  envelope  and  read  as  fol- 
lows:— "Reverend  Sir: — In  pursuance  of  our 
policy  we  hereby  give  you  fair  warning  that  if 
you  misrepresent  or  oppose  the  Mine  Workers' 
Union  from  your  pulpit  or  otherwise  as  you  did 
in  your  yesterday  morning's  sermon  you  will 
suffer  the  full  penalty  of  this  organization." 

No  date  or  signature  graced  the  sheet,  except, 
in  place  of  the  signature,  there  was  the  rough 
sketch  of  a  black  hand.  The  clerical  gentleman 
put  the  ominous  letter  where  his  wife  could  not 
get  it  and  went  on  with  his  usual  work.  And 
thus  the  time  passed. 

In  the  evening  the  doorbell  announced  a  caller. 
A  moment  later  Tom  Boland  was  ushered  into 
the  room.  The  three  friends  chatted  for  a  few 
minutes  on  the  current  topics  of  the  day  and 
when  the  conversation  began  to  languish  Tom 
said  that  he  would  like  to  speak  privately  with 
Mr.  Needman  for  a  moment  on  a  little  matter  of 
business.  The  two  excused  themselves  to  Mrs. 
Needman  and  repaired  to  the  study — the  secret 
chamber  of  every  minister  of  the  Gospel.  When 
the  door  closed  behind  them  Tom  produced  a 


124  A  FAST  GAME 

letter  and,  handing  it  to  his  pastor,  asked,  "What 
would  you  do  if  you  were  I?" 

Mr.  Needman  read  as  follows: — 

"Sir:— 

In  pursuance  of  our  policy  we  hereby  give 
you  fair  warning  that  you  must  either  join  the 
Mine  Workers'  Union  or  resign  your  position  in 
the  Diamond  Mine  or  pay  the  sum  of  five  hundred 
dollars  to  a  certain  person  on  the  east  end  of  the 
Lackawanna  bridge  on  Wednesday  evening  at 
nine  o'clock  or  suffer  the  penalty  of  this  organ- 
ization." 

Under  the  words  sprawled  the  foreboding  black 
hand.  Without  speaking  a  word  the  pastor  took 
from  a  pigeonhole  his  threatening  message  and 
handed  it  to  Tom.  When  he  read  the  note  he 
looked  up  into  the  expectant  face  of  his  pastor 
and  said  with  some  warmth,  "If  it  has  come  to 
this,  I  propose  to  hold  my  job  and  suffer  the  con- 
sequences. What  say  you,  Brother  Needman?" 

"I  am  with  you.  We'll  just  lay  low,  go  on  as 
if  nothing  had  happened,  trust  in  the  Lord  and 
keep  our  powder  dry." 

"That  settles  it,"  answered  Tom,  extending  his 
hand.  "We'll  see  the  game  through.  Put  it  there 
to  the  last,"  and  the  two  brotherly  hands  sepa- 
rated and  the  subject  dropped  for  the  evening. 

When  they  returned  to  the  sitting  room  they 
found  Naomi  Slocum  in  conversation  with  Mrs. 
Needman.  The  quartet  conversed  pleasantly  for 
some  time,  drank  a  cup  of  cocoa  together  and 
talked  of  more  serious  subjects  for  a  little  longer, 
after  which  Naomi  rose  to  go.  Tom  at  once 
offered  his  company,  which  courtesy  she  as 


INTIMIDATION  125 

quickly  accepted,  and  the  two  left  the  parsonage 
together. 

"I  do  not  know  what  we  are  coming  to,  Mr. 
Boland,"  said  Naomi  after  they  had  walked 
half  a  square  in  silence,  "if  affairs  continue  as 
they  are  going." 

"What  do  you  mean,  Miss  Slocum?'" 

"Oh,  I  hardly  know  myself.  The  air  seems  to 
be  full  of  secrecy  and  ill  omens.  First,  one  is 
threatened  by  one  society  if  he  does  not  obey  its 
demands  and  then  another  is  warned  by  another 
organization  that  he  must  submit  to  its  peremp- 
tory authority.  One  can  not  stir  unless  he  is 
watched  by  some  one." 

"You  haven't,  given  me  any  definite  informa- 
tion, yet,  as  to  the  cause  of  your  apprehension." 

"Well,  I  know  of  a  certain  non-union  man  who 
has  received  warning  to  quit  his  job  or  suffer  the 
consequences,  and  this  morning  grandfather  re- 
ceived two  letters — both  anonymous,  of  course — 
the  one  demanding  that  you  be  discharged  or  he 
must  take  the  consequences,  and,  in  the  place  of 
the  signature,  a  sketch  of  a  black  hand;  and  the 
other,  demanding  him  to  join  the  operators'  union, 
or  forfeit  five  thousand  dollars  or  look  out  for 
boycott,  excessive  freight  rates  et  caetera,  and 
signed  by  a  red  hand." 

"Well,  what  is  he  going  to  do  about  it?"  anx- 
iously inquired  Tom. 

"Do  about  it?  Why,  what  can  he  do?  He 
would  not  be  grandfather  if  he  did  not  have  his 
own  way;  and  father  and  Uncle  Henry  are  of 
the  same  opinion.  The  letters  are  already  burned 
and  you  need  not  fear  about  losing  your  position 
so  long  as  there  is  a  Black  Diamond  Company." 


126  A  FAST  GAME 

earnestly  answered  the  girl  as  she  kindly  smiled 
up  into  Tom's  concerned  face.  "You  need  have 
no  uneasiness  concerning  your  future  welfare 
so  long  as  you  are  as  faithful  to  duty  as  you  have 
been  with  us,"  and  she  hugged  his  arm  up  tightly 
in  hers — &  token  of  loyalty  and  confidence. 

Tom  choked  down  a  lump  in  his  throat.  A 
sense  of  gratitude  moved  his  emotions  when 
he  was  assured  of  so  loyal  friends  as  his  em- 
ployers— friends  who  had  implicit  confidence 
in  his  integrity,  ability  and  fidelity.  Contrasted 
feelings  of  anxiety  also  possessed  him  when  he 
thought  of  his  own  black  hand  letter,  However, 
his  spirit  of  determination  did  not  flinch,  in  fact, 
it  increased  the  more  he  pondered  the  subject, 
Whatever  the  threat  of  the  secret  writer  meant 
Tom  resolved  to  stand  like  a  man  to  what  he 
believed  to  be  the  right  and  his  duty. 

"What  would  you  do  if  you  were  in  that  non- 
union man's  position,  Miss  Slocum?"  inquired 
Tom. 

"I  believe  I'd  stand  my  ground,"  proudly 
answered  the  little  woman.  "But  if  you  should 
get  such  a  letter,  I  believe,  if  I  were  you,  I  would 
resign.  Wouldn't  it  be  awful  if  you  should  get  a 
warning  like  that?  But  then  you  wont.  The 
very  thought  is  presumptuous." 

"Why  should  I  submit  to  the  demand  of  the 
black  hand  any  more  than  anyone  else?  Where 
is  the  discrimination?" 

"Oh,  Tom,  it  seems  different  in  your  case." 

"Seeming  does  not  alter  the  principle  of  the 
act,  does  it?" 

"No-o,  of  course  not;  but  I  would  not  like  to 
have  you  get  into  any  trouble." 


INTIMIDATION  127 

"Trouble?  Ought  one  to  flinch  duty  even 
if  it  does  bring  trouble?  Would  you?" 

"No,  I  wouldn't,  if  it  took  my  life,"  quickly 
replied  the  thoroughly  aroused  girl. 

"Why  would  it  be  different  in  my  case,  then? 
Am  I  to  be  favored  above  other  men?" 

A  moment  of  silence  followed  as  they  neared 
Naomi's  home.  She  walked  with  her  head  down 
as  if  struggling  for  self  control.  Tom  could 
easily  feel  the  tremor  of  her  arm  as  it  lay  in  his. 
It  was  her  turn  now  to  swallow  the  rising  passions 
which  contended  for  utterance  in  the  one  direc- 
tion and  for  a  burst  of  tears  in  the  other. 

"Don't  ask  me,  Mr.  Boland.  It's  altogether 
different  in  your  position.  Good-night!" 

The  last  words  were  spoken  under  superior 
restraint  and  with  a  plaintive,  suppressed  voice. 
A  moment  later  Tom  stood  alone  on  the  steps 
of  Benjamin  Slocum's  mansion.  The  diverse 
thoughts  that  rapidly  followed  one  another 
through  Tom's  mind,  and  vied  with  each  other 
for  consideration,  are  better  suggested  to  the 
reader  than  enumerated  in  words.  Whether 
or  not  the  consciousness  of  manly  determination 
and  devotion  to  duty,  the  solicitude  for  the  wel- 
fare of  his  employers  or  his  guileless  love  for 
Naomi,  secured  the  supremacy  in  his  contem- 
plations and  his  emotions  we  also  leave  to  the 
candid  judgment  of  the  reader. 

Suffice  it  to  say  that  Tom  passed  through  the 
streets  of  Onaway  safely  and  arrived  at  the  door 
of  his  humble  dwelling  which  he  called  home, 
scarcely  cognizant  of  the  stones  on  which  he 
trod  or  the  buildings  that  lined  either  side  of  the 
thoroughfare.  A  few  flakes  of  frost  sifted  here 


128  A  FAST  GAME 

and  there  through  the  wintry  air,  the  electric 
lamps  on  the  corners  swung  silently  back  and 
forth  by  the  gentle  touch  of  the  night  wind,  and 
the  deserted  streets  played  with  the  flitting 
shadows  thrown  from  the  swinging  censers  of 
light,  when  the  door  closed  behind  Tom  Boland. 

Nearly  two  weeks  later  than  the  events  recorded 
above,  the  Saturday  morning  and  evening  papers 
announced  that  the  pastor  of  the  First  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church  would  preach  at  the  following 
Sunday  morning  service  on  the  subject  of  "Fra- 
ternity, or  the  Individual  Rights  in  Relation  to 
Capital  and  Labor."  A  hum  of  excitement  went 
through  the  city  and  instead  of  a  boycott  and 
empty  pews,  the  auditorium  was  crowded  to 
the  doors. 

Both  sides  and  all  sides  waited  the  sermon  with 
expectancy,  wondering  which  side  would  be 
the  favored  party;  each  member  of  the  congre- 
gation believing,  to  a  certain  extent,  at  least, 
that  his  own  opinions  were  unprejudiced  and  that 
he  must  necessarily  be  one  of  the  favored  few. 
No  one  expected  invective  or  undue  fervor, 
for  the  Reverend  Needman  never  indulged  in 
diatribes  and  acrimonious  denunciaiton.  His  ar- 
gument was  always  clear;  his  style,  ornate;  and 
his  delivery,  dignified  and  forceful.  We  do 
not  intend  to  give  a  verbatim  report  of  the  ser- 
mon he  delivered  on  that  occasion,  only  an  out- 
line of  the  ideas  propounded,  sufficient  to  clearly 
express  the  import  of  his  argument  and  thought. 
After  giving  his  text:  "Thou  shalt  love  thy 
neighbor  as  thyself,"  he  mentioned  the  fact 
that  influences  had  been  brought  to  bear  upon 
him  by  his  friends  to  keep  silent  on  the  delicate 


INTIMIDATION  129 

subject  that,  just  at  present,  seemed  in  every- 
body's mouth. 

Well  aware  that  he  had  already,  unintention- 
ally of  course,  offended  some  with  his  former 
utterances  he  thought  best,  in  justice  to  the 
importance  of  the  subject,  in  justice  to  those 
whom  he  had  already  displeased,  and  in  justice 
to  himself  and  the  Gospel  he  preached,  to  treat 
the  question,  to  the  best  of  his  knowledge  and 
conscience,  impartially,  prayerfully  and  ex- 
haustively, so  that  all  might  know  his  position 
and  understand  that  he  was  a  true  friend  to  every 
individual. 

Individual  rights  are  the  sacred  inheritance  of 
every  American  citizen.  As  Judge  Andrews  puts 
it  in  one  of  his  addresses  of  recent  date: — "Nothing 
is  more  valuable;  nothing  so  much  to  be  desired; 
nothing  that  can  so  develop  the  heart  and  mind 
as  the  full  measure  of  individual  liberty.  Freedom 
to  move  from  place  to  place;  freedom  to  avail 
one's  self  of  all  the  opportunities  for  improvement 
of  body  or  mind,  and  of  all  conditions,  social  or 
physical,  that  can  minister  to  our  happiness; 
freedom  to  work  or  not  to  work;  in  short,  the 
right  to  enjoy  personal  freedom  to  any  extent 
that  does  not  interfere  with  the  like  right  of 
enjoyment  in  every  other  member  of  the  com- 
munity. 

"This  personal  and  individual  freedom,  this 
civil  liberty  thus  denned  and  described,  was  a 
great  achievement  of  our  fathers,  and  is  the  glory 
of  all  our  constitutions  and  forms  of  government, 
state  and  national."  Any  person,  therefore,  if 
he  be  an  employe,  has  the  right  to  work  or  not  to 
work,  to  begin  or  quit  his  job,  to  hire  out  his 


130  A  FAST  GAME 

services  to  the  individual  or  the  corporation  he 
chooses  and  at  a  certain  scale  of  wages  the  em- 
ployer and  the  employe  agree  upon;  if  he  be  an 
employer,  he  has  the  right  to  hire  or  discharge 
whom  he  pleases  and  when  he  pleases,  to  join  an 
operator's  union  or  not  and  to  pay  the  wage  as 
agreed  upon  with  his  employe. 

The  corporate  rights  are  the  same.  It  must  be 
conceded  that  incorporated  companies  have  the 
same  right  to  join  a  union  of  such  companies  for 
their  own  protection  as  the  individual  may  have 
to  join  a  union  for  his  own  protection.  The  right 
to  hire  and  discharge  are  the  same  in  each  in- 
stance, whether  corporation  or  individual,  whether 
the  corporation  be  composed  of  employers  or 
employes,  whether  of  incorporated  employers' 
unions  or  of  incorporated  employes'  unions. 

As  Judge  Andrews  again  says  in  regard  to  the 
opportunities: — "Purging  themselves  of  every 
anti-social  and  unworthy  element,  recognizing  in 
others  the  rights  they  claim  for  themselves,  with 
malice  toward  none  and  charity  toward  all, 
subordinate  to  law,  with  a  full  sense  of  their 
responsibilities  as  American  citizens,  and  making 
their  appeal  to  the  public  opinion  of  the  country, 
they  will  be  held  in  time  to  come,  by  employer 
and  employed,  as  powerful  coadjutors  in  the 
maintenance  of  American  ideals  of  free  govern- 
ment among  men." 

The  limitations  of  power  apply  to  the  individual 
and  the  corporation  alike,  as  do  their  rights. 
Neither  party  can  use  compulsory  measures  upon 
the  other  or  upon  one  of  his  own  craft.  When 
one  even  interferes  with  the  rights  of  another  he 
exceeds  his  limitations  and  deprives  the  other 


INTIMIDATION  131 

of  what  he  deems  most  valuable  to  himself — 
namely,  the  freedom  of  choice  or  personal  liberty. 
No  individual  has  a  right  to  coerce  another  in- 
dividual into  membership  in  a  union,  nor  has  the 
union,  composed  of  corporate  or  unincorporate 
individuals,  a  right  to  exceed  those  of  the  individ- 
ual. No  man,  or  company  of  men,  may  be  re- 
garded as  possessing  the  right  to  quit  his  job 
and  hold  it  at  one  and  the  same  time,  nor  prevent 
another  from  taking  up  the  work  where  he  volun- 
tarily laid  it  down ;  nor  has  he  the  right  to  call  in  the 
aid  of  others,  who  have  no  personal  grievance,  to 
take  up  his  trouble  and  join  him  in  an  effort  to 
destroy  another  or  another's  prospects  in  business 
or  labor. 

The  principle  of  discrimination,  so  called,  is 
unjust,  intolerable  and  un-American.  Applied 
to  the  uniform  wage  scale — that  is,  every  person 
who  labors  at  the  same  kind  of  work  for  a  given 
time,  should  receive  the  same  wages — fosters 
laziness  and  incompetency.  If  two  employes 
work  side  by  side  at  the  same  kind  of  work  for  the 
same  number  of  hours,  the  one  shiftless  and 
shirking  in  his  duties,  the  other  careful  and  indus- 
trious, it  is  an  unjust  discrimination  to  pay  each 
the  same  wages.  It  tends  to  discourage  care- 
fulness and  encourages  carelessness. 

The  closed  shop  may  be  termed  as  discrimina- 
tion and  is  as  hard  a  nut  to  crack  as  the  old  time 
predestinarian  views.  That  an  old  employer 
should  be  forced  to  turn  out  an  old  and  faithful 
employe  to  make  room  for  another  who  is  less 
competent  and  a  new  employe,  simply  because 
some  party  or  parties  demand  the  change,  is  not 
only  discrimination  with  a  vengeance,  but  it  is 


132  A  FAST  GAME 

overstepping  the  bounds  of  reason  and  right, 
and  establishing  tyranny  in  the  place  of  liberty. 

On  the  other  hand,  capital  must  recognize  the 
right  of  labor  to  organize  for  its  own  protection 
and  benefit,  and  such  laborers  should  not  be 
discriminated  against  so  long  as  they  do  not 
interfere  with  the  rights  of  others.  Employers 
and  employed  should  not  be  hostile  forces  but 
allies  and  partners  in  production.  They  prosper 
together;  they  suffer  together.  To  tolerate  dis- 
cord between  these  great  interests  is  not  only 
unjust  but  suicidal. 

Whoever  wins  the  game,  be  he  playing  it  alone 
or  in  partnership,  wins  it  on  individual  merit. 
"We  hold  these  truths  to  be  self-evident — that  all 
men  are  created  equal;  that  they  are  endowed  by 
their  Creator  with  certain  inalienable  rights;  that 
among  these  are  life,  liberty,  and  the  pursuit  of 
happiness."  In  closing  the  sermon  the  speaker 
quoted  the  above  sentence  from  the  Declaration 
of  Independence  and  concluded  with: 

"As  our  own  beloved  President  of  this  liberty 
loving  nation  said  in  a  recent  address  touching 
on  this  subject  of  so  vital  interest  to  the  laboring 
man,  the  operator  and  the  consumer  alike:  'The 
consistent  policy  of  the  national  government,  so 
far  as  it  has  the  power,  is  not  only  to  hold  in  cheek 
the  unscrupulous  man,  whether  employer  or 
employe;  but  to  reusfe  to  weaken  individual 
initiative  or  to  hamper  or  cramp  the  industrial 
development  of  the  country.  We  recognize  that 
this  is  an  era  of  federation  and  combination,  in 
which  great  capitalistic  corporations  and  labor 
unions  have  become  factors  of  tremendous  im- 
portance in  all  industrial  centers. 


INTIMIDATION  133 

"  'Hearty  recognition  is  given  the  far-reaching, 
beneficent  work  which  has  been  accomplished 
through  both  corporations  and  unions,  and  the 
line,  as  between  different  unions,  as  between  dif- 
ferent corporations,  is  drawn  as  it  is  between 
different  individuals;  that  is,  it  is  drawn  on 
conduct,  the  effort  being  to  treat  both  organized 
capital  and  organized  labor  alike;  asking  nothing 
save  that  the  interest  of  each  shall  be  brought 
in  harmony  with  the  interest  of  the  general  public, 
and  that  the  conduct  of  each  shall  conform  to 
the  fundamental  rule  of  obedience  to  law,  of 
individual  freedom,  and  of  justice  and  fair  deal- 
ing toward  all.' 

'  'Whenever  either  corporation,  labor  union, 
or  individual  disregards  the  law  or  acts  in  a  spirit 
of  arbitrary  and  tyrannous  interference  with 
the  rights  of  others,  whether  corporation  or 
individual,  then  where  the  federal  government 
has  jurisdiction,  it  will  see  to  it  that  the  miscon- 
duct is  stopped,  paying  not  the  slightest  heed 
to  the  position  or  the  power  of  the  corporation, 
the  union  or  the  individual,  but  only  to  one 
vital  fact — that  is,  the  question  whether  or  not 
the  conduct  of  the  individual  or  the  aggregate 
of  individuals  is  in  accordance  with  the  law  of 
the  land.  Every  man  must  be  guaranteed  his 
liberty  and  his  right  to  do  as  he  likes  with  his 
property  or  his  labor,  so  long  as  he  does  not 
infringe  the  rights  of  others.  No  man  is  above 
the  law  and  no  man  is  below  it;  nor  do  we  ask 
any  man's  permsision  when  we  require  him  to 
obey  it.  Obedience  to  the  law  is  demanded  as 
a  right;  not  asked  as  a  favor.' 

"Therefore,   we  are  driven   to  the   conclusion, 


134  A  FAST  GAME 

by  the  law  of  our  land  as  interpreted  by  our 
Chief  Executive,  which  is  in  harmony,  yes, 
based  upon  the  law  of  Almighty  God  as  inter- 
preted by  His  Chief  Executive,  Jesus  Christ, 
that  all  difficulties  existing  between  capital  and 
labor,  between  individual  and  individual,  be- 
tween man  and  man  or  man  and  men,  or  the 
differences  which  may  ever  arise  between  them, 
can  be  settled,  and  settled  right,  only  by  follow- 
ing the  admonition  of  the  King  of  Kings  and  the 
Lord  of  Lords,  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor 
as  thyself.'  ' 

The  pastor  pronounced  the  benediction  and 
followed  his  usual  custom  of  standing  at  one  of 
the  doors  to  shake  hands  with  the  members  of 
his  congregation  as  they  departed  from  the  build- 
ing. Many  hands  that  morning  refused  the  warm 
grasp  of  the  divine;  some  wore  the  blue  powder 
marks  of  the  miner,  others  the  horny  callous 
of  the  rockmen  and  runners,  others  the  soft 
greasy  palm  of  the  oilers  and  engineers,  and  still 
others  the  velvety  hands  of  the  pompous  operator. 
Many  of  the  disgruntled  ones  held  their  member- 
ship in  the  First  Church  and  the  parson's  pre- 
science scented  trouble  in  the  ranks,  not  only 
against  him  but  disaffection  and  disunion  among 
themselves. 

Some  congratulated  him  and  bade  him  god- 
speed. He  had  cast  the  die.  The  declaration 
of  his  convictions  had  gone  forth  and  he  could 
not  recant.  A  half  hour  in  his  study  on  his 
knees  produced  the  necessary  quietus  for  his 
agitated  nerves  and  anxious  soul.  The  vigorous 
parson  had  declared  only  the  simple  teaching  of 
the  Master  whom  he  served  day  and  night,  he 


INTIMIDATION  135 

had  done  but  his  duty — opened  his  window 
toward  Jerusalem.  He  cast  the  consequences 
into  the  hands  of  the  Lord  and  waited  patiently 
for  Providence  to  assert  his  decrees  and  carry 
out  his  designs. 

The  following  afternoon  Needman  sallied  out 
upon  the  streets  as  he  had  ever  done  and  bent 
his  steps  to  the  home  of  the  unionist  and  the 
operator  alike,  in  either  instance  carrying  the 
message  of  consolation  and  sympathy  to  the 
troubled  heart.  He  opened  his  lips  in  prayer 
at  the  bedside  of  Phebe,  the  crippled  and  now 
feverish  sister  of  Oscar  Morgan,  and  hurried  on 
to  the  palatial  home  of  Harwood,  where  he  had 
been  summoned  to  the  bedside  of  the  master  of 
the  house,  who  had  imbibed  too  freely  at  his 
club  the  night  before  and  who  tossed  in  the 
agonies  of  a  nervous  collapse.  He  received  a 
welcome  everywhere  he  went  as  the  bearer  of 
comfort  and  Christian  encouragement.  He  played 
his  game  like  a  man. 


CHAPTER    IX 

PRINCE    ARTHUR 

The  snow  lay  deep  in  the  streets  of  Onaway. 
The  storm  had  continued  for  twenty-four  hours. 
The  thermometer  stood  only  a  little  above  zero 
when  the  ice  dust  began  to  fall  but  the  storm 
concluded  with  the  temperature  above  freezing. 
Big  flakes  filled  the  atmosphere,  flung  away  their 
white  wings,  and  doused  into  the  snow  in  drop- 
letts  which  were  sozzled  around  by  a  warm  shower 
and  a  final  downpour.  The  wind  in  its  wanderings 
caught  the  breath  of  the  south  and  blew  it  into 
the  dripping  clouds. 

A  half  hour  later  every  patch  of  nimbus  had 
fled  from  the  field  of  blue,  leaving  no  trail  of  the 
battle  of  the  elements  which  had  been  fought  so 
recently.  The  sun  reigned  in  his  glory.  He 
whirled  through  the  sky  on  his  monocycle  of  gold, 
the  sparks  from  which  shining  chariot  set  the 
eaves  of  every  building  adrip  and  flushed  the 
gutters  and  sidewalks  with  the  sloshiest  slush 
that  ever  graced  the  streets  of  a  city.  With  the 
scrape  of  the  snow  shovel  mingled  the  laugh  of  the 
shovelers,  punctured  now  and  then  by  the  spat 
of  a  snowball  to  break  the  monotony  of  the  toil 
and  to  remind  the  neighbor,  by  the  little  love 
tap,  that  he  was  relegated  to  the  list  of  the  un- 

136 


PRINCE  ARTHUR  137 

forgotten.  The  February  thaw  had  arrived  in 
earnest. 

Schools  were  out  and  the  good  Lord  only  knows 
what  public  school  pupils  will  not  do  at  such  a 
time.  From  one  of  the  passing  trolley  cars 
Harry  Norwood,  the  coal  operator,  issued  to 
walk  the  remaining  two  blocks  home,  along  which 
street  the  trolley  track  did  not  run.  For  several 
days  Mr.  Norwood  had  grappled  with  business 
relative  to  the  church,  the  coming  lockout  or 
strike.  His  nerves  burned  a  little  and  conscience 
more;  consequently,  his  nervous  system  rebelled. 
To  put  down  the  rebellion  he  imbibed  beyond  the 
limit  of  his  customary  potation  of  fat  wine  on 
the  leas.  That  overindulgence  easily  led  to  the 
back  parlor  of  The  Anthracite,  where  stronger 
neurotic  potions  gratified  his  increasing  and  capri- 
cious appetite.  The  indulgent  landlord  saw  the 
drift  of  the  tide  and  the  ultimate  haven  of  the 
drifter  and  prepared  to  remove  the  inspirited 
man  from  his  cups  and  companions  to  an  un- 
disturbed retreat  where  he  might  sleep  off  the 
slowly  developing  somnolent  stupidity.  But  the 
subject  of  so  indulgent  kindness  was  not  so  easily 
disposed  of. 

When  the  landlord  attempted  to  remove  Nor- 
wood's watch,  that  it  might  not  be  stolen  by 
anyone,  and,  of  course,  return  it  after  the  slum- 
berer  awoke,  the  slight  movement  disturbed  the 
dozing  operator  who  sprang  unsteadily  to  his 
feet  and  demanded  an  explanation  for  so  uncere- 
moniously appropriating  his  personal  effects. 
No  explanation  explained,  however,  and  the 
insulted  man  left  the  room  in  a  fit  of  anger  and 
threats  of  arresting  the  proprietor  with  so  ductile 


138  A  FAST  GAME 

fingers  and  so  adhesive  a  touch.  The  sudden 
vent  of  passion  balanced  him  sufficiently  to  gain 
the  street  and  safely,  if  not  gracefully,  board  a 
passing  car  just  as  the  last  bit  of  filmy  mist  van- 
ished in  thin  air. 

He  no  sooner  stepped  out  into  the  slush  on 
the  crossing  than  his  feet  plunged  unnecessarily 
over  shoe  tops  into  the  gutter.  The  wideawake 
school  boys  instantly  detected  the  outward  effect 
of  an  inward  and  spiritual  power. 

"Look  a  thar,  boys,"  shouted  Norman  Boland, 
as  the  intoxicated  man  fetched  up  against  a 
trolley  pole.  "See  the  old  monkey  shin  up  a 
tree!" 

"Can't  make  it,  old  man!"  yelled  another  lad 
as  he  hurled  a  snow  ball.  "Take  that  fur  luck!" 

"Who's  the  rube,  anyway?"  called  another 
from  the  fast  gathering  crowd. 

The  foremost  of  the  youngsters  drew  a  little 
nearer  and,  identifying  their  victim,  wheeled 
and  shouted  back,  "It's  the  Old  Harry,  hisself!" 
Then  hurrying  to  the  group  he  told  who  it  was. 
A  low  whispered  consultation  followed,  inter- 
spersed by  many  a  grin  and  giggle  and  punctured 
by  many  an  ejaculatory  "gee!"  while  the  boys 
threaded  in  and  out  among  themselves  like  a 
bunch  of  water  bugs  in  an  eddy  of  a  woodland 
stream.  Occasionally  they  stopped  in  their  cir- 
culatory motions  to  pack  their  snowballs  harder 
by  squeezing  them  across  the  knee.  When  they 
had  carefully  planned  the  advance  and  every 
pocket  fairly  burst  with  ammunition,  the  squad 
deployed  and  charged,  yelling  at  the  top  of  their 
voices. 

"Feed  it  to  'im,  now!"  shouted  Ned  above  the 


PRINCE  ARTHUR  139 

din.  He  had  assumed  command  by  virtue  of 
his  chest  expansion  and  strength  of  vocal  chords. 
"Feed  it  to  'im,  right!" 

"Soak  'im  a  couple!"  screamed  another  as  he 
flung  his  missiles  with  a  rapidity  and  accuracy 
that  would  do  credit  to  a  baseball  twirler  of  pro- 
fessional renown. 

Volley  after  volley  of  the  snowy  bullets  merci- 
lessly pelted  the  retreating  figure.  Once  the 
assaulted  operator  attempted  to  turn  on  his 
assailants  but  he  could  not  stand  the  fire.  The 
shells  had  no  respect  for  person  or  place,  but 
struck  and  exploded  on  the  bridge  of  his  nose  or 
on  the  butt  of  his  ear  or  landed  on  his  jaw  as 
impartially  as  they  spent  their  force  in  the  loose 
folds  of  Norwood's  heavy  beaver  overcoat  or  in 
the  soft  snow  of  the  street.  It  was  no  use;  he 
could  not  face  such  a  galling  fire.  So  on  up  the 
street  he  staggered,  angered  and  weak  and  blinded. 
Once  he  shook  his  fist  at  the  boys  but  with  his 
back  toward  them.  It  served  its  purpose,  how- 
ever, by  inviting  the  assaulting  party  to  renew 
the  attack. 

"He's  hot  'n  the  collar!"  shouted  the  leader. 

"I'll  cool  it  fur  'im,  then!"  answered  the  nearest 
charger  as  he  landed  a  well  soaked  ball  in  the 
back  of  the  neck,  just  above  the  sleek,  velvet 
trimmed  coat  collar. 

The  blow  put  the  fleeing  one  entirely  at  the 
mercy  of  the  boys.  His  unsteady  legs  swaggered 
too  near  the  curbing  over  which  his  right  foot 
tripped  and  Mr.  Norwood  landed  head  foremost  in 
the  gutter,  at  the  moment  that  his  son,  Arthur,  a 
lad  of  five  years,  burst  out  through  the  gate  of 
the  Norwood  mansion  and  rushed  at  the  howling 


140  A  FAST  GAME 

crowd,  simultaneously  hurling  his  little  snow  balls 
and  his  passionate  invectives  into  the  victorious 
legions. 

"You  leave  my  papa  be,"  after  he  had  delivered 
a  half  dozen  balls  and  stood  squarely  and  de- 
fiantly with  a  ball  in  each  hand.  "I'll  plug  ye 
one  if  ye  come  any  nearer!" 

This  unexpected  enemy  checked  the  advance 
and  lulled  for  a  moment  the  din  of  battle,  but 
only  a  moment,  for  Mr.  Norwood,  rolling  uneasily 
on  his  moist  couch,  solicited  another  onset.  But 
Prince  Arthur  stood  his  ground  like  a  good  sir 
knight  of  the  Round  Table.  He  was  on  his 
mettle  with  his  blood  up.  He  displayed  courage 
that  brooked  no  defeat.  His  very  boldness  and 
diminutive  size  caused  the  firing  to  cease,  though 
the  jeers  went  on. 

"Don't  hit  the  kid!"  commanded  the  sym- 
pathetic Ned,  "but  plug  'is  dad!" 

The  boys  formed  a  semi-circle  around  the 
father  and  son;  the  former  sitting  and  draining 
on  the  curbstone,  the  latter  darting  from  one 
side  to  the  other  as  an  invader  approached  too 
near  his  self-intrusted  charge.  Arthur  shook  his 
fists  at  the  mob  of  youngsters  and  stamped  his 
foot. 

"Git  out  o'  here,"  he  shouted.  "I'll  call  the 
p'lice!  Stop,  now,  I  say,  or  I'll  sling  this  inter 
yer  snoot!"  and  he  dove  after  one  of  the  chaps, 
who  had  ventured  to  pick  up  the  helpless  man's 
crushed  and  drabbled  hat.  At  this  exigency  a 
carelessly  thrown  snowball  hit  the  little  hero  in 
the  face.  He  covered  his  face  with  his  hands  for 
a  moment  as  if  wondering  whether  or  not  he  had 
better  cry.  In  the  slanting  rays  of  the  sun  could 


PRINCE  ARTHUR  141 

be  seen  on  the  reddened  cheeks  trickling  drops  of 
melted  snow  and  tears  mingled  together,  and  a 
little  streak  of  blood  across  his  upper  lip  which 
quivered  like  his  voice.  Again  he  looked  his 
antagonists  straight  in  the  face  and  commanded, 
"Now,  quit,  I  tell  ye!  I'll  snowball  ye  to  deff  if 
ye  hit  me  ag'in  or  put  a  han'  on  my  papa.  Goo 
off,  now!" 

Just  then  one  of  the  boys  whispered  loudly 
"cop!"  The  company  of  lads  dispersed  like 
magic,  leaving  the  entire  field  to  the  big  police- 
man, the  little  hero  and  the  hero's  father.  The 
blue  coat  assisted  the  boy's  father  into  the  house 
and  left  him  there,  shut  out  from  the  curious 
world.  Mrs.  Norwood  did  not  relish  the  conduct 
of  her  husband.  Though  not  accustomed  to 
come  home  in  his  present  condition,  especially 
the  gutter  ducking  and  the  hapless  victim  of  a 
young  mob,  his  pitiable  plight  and  swollen  face 
aroused  no  sympathy  in  his  wife.  She  held  her- 
self aloof  from  him  and  paid  no  more  heed  to  him 
than  if  he  had  not  been  present.  No  more 
faithful  wife  ever  lived  than  she,  but  her  spotless 
character  came  not  so  much  from  the  practice  of 
virtue  as  from  inherited  temperament.  She  was 
naturally  proof  against  temptation  and,  hence,  as 
naturally  cold  and  unsympathetic  in  nature — 
white  and  cold  as  the  driven  snow. 

"Mama,  tome  an' help  papa,  quick!  He's  sick!" 
exclaimed  Prince  Arthur,  opening  the  door  and 
rushing  in  ahead  of  the  policeman  and  his  father. 
"Tome,  mama!" 

"Guess  he  isn't  dangerous,  Arthur,"  coldly 
responded  the  mother  rocking  back  and  forth  and 
never  looking  up  from  her  reading. 


142  A  FAST  GAME 

"Yeth,  he  be  too,  mama;  he  can't  walk," 
urged  the  little  fellow,  tugging  at  his  mother's 
arm. 

"Now,  Arthur,  don't  bother  me.  Your  papa 
made  himself  sick  and  now  let  him  make  himself 
well  again." 

"Do  you  know  what  ails  him,  mama?"  pleaded 
the  little  intercessor.  "Has  he  got  the  fiford 
fever?" 

"No!  he's  drunk.     Go  away  and  let  me  alone." 

The  innocent  hero  rushed  back  into  the  hall 
shouting  at  the  top  of  his  voice,  "Papa's  dwunk, 
Mr.  P'liceman,  an'  mama  won't  tend  to  him. 
I  t'n  do  it,  though!"  and  away  he  hustled  up  the 
stairway  whither  the  officer  of  the  law  had  con- 
ducted the  partially  sobered  parent. 

The  wife  continued  her  reading  as  if  nothing 
had  happened  while  the  son  threw  off  his  wraps 
in  a  heap  on  the  floor  of  the  room  in  which  his 
father  was  making  a  desperate  effort  to  remove 
his  own  clothing. 

"I'll  help  ye,  papa,  if  mama  won't.  I  t'n  take 
off  yer  shoes." 

Suiting  the  action  to  the  word  he  got  busy  as 
a  bee.  He  tugged  and  bustled  around,  keeping 
his  body  in  constant  motion  and  his  tongue  just 
as  lively  as  his  fingers. 

"There's  one  shoe  off.  Can't  I  hustle,  papa? 
What  would  you  do  wivout  your  little  boy?  I'm 
most  a  man,  an'it  I,  papa?  I'll  take  yer  coat  an' 
vest,"  and  before  one  could  say  "scat,"  he  had 
hauled  them  off  the  left  arm  and  heaped  them  in 
a  corner  of  the  room.  The  father  attempted  to 
remove  his  collar  and,  while  he  fumbled  with  the 
tie,  Arthur  noticed  the  utter  failure  of  the  process, 


PRINCE  ARTHUR  143 

and,  springing  on  to  the  bed  beside  his  father, 
began  to  take  off  the  troublesome  article. 

"I'll  do  that,  papa!" 

In  an  instant  the  little  fingers  were  at  work. 
When  the  cravat  was  nearly  off  the  sharp  eyes  of 
the  lad  noticed  the  swollen  cheeks  and  the  red 
eyes. 

"Why,  papa,  dem  naughty  boys  has  hurt  your 
cheek  awful,  ain't  dey,  papa?  I  fro  wed  snow- 
balls into  'em  an'  I  bet  day  got  bigger  cheeks 
den  you.  It  made  ye  cry,  didn't  it,  papa?  Your 
eyes  be  awful  red  an'  here  turns  a  tear." 

The  midget  leaped  from  the  bed  and  was  back 
again  in  an  instant  with  a  handkerchief,  wiping 
the  face  of  the  sorrowful  father  for  the  words  of 
the  son  began  to  penetrate  his  heart  and  the 
shame  and  disgrace  got  hold  upon  him.  His 
example  before  his  son  dawned  on  him  like  a 
sword  penetrating  his  vitals.  Drunk  enough  to 
be  slow  in  his  movements  he  had  sufficiently 
sobered  to  realize  where  he  was,  who  talked  to 
him  and  worked  over  him,  and  to  feel  the  twinge 
of  conscience. 

"Pa-pa's  shick,  dear!"  he  murmured  with 
groggy  tongue. 

"No,  yer  dwunk,  mama  says.  You  fordot, 
didn't  ye,  papa?"  laughed  the  little  fellow.  "Mans 
det  dwunk,  don't  dey,  papa?  I  ain't  a  man  yet, 
be  I,  papa? — I'm  most  a  man,  ain't  I,  papa? — 
My!  dat  shirt  sleeve  sticks  awful,  don't  it,  papa? 
— Dere  it  turns  an'  here's  yer  nightshirt. — When 
I  get  to  be  a  big  man,  I'm  going  to  get  dwunk, 
can't  I,  papa?  You'll  help  me  to  bed  den,  wont 
you,  papa?  It's  big  to  get  dwunk,  ain't  it,  papa? 
I'll  be  big  some  day  an'  turn  home  dwunk, — but 


144  A  FAST  GAME 

I'd  lick  dem  boys  if  dey  snowballed  me  an'  got 
me  in  the  ditch,  wouldn't  I,  papa? — Why,  papa, 
what  you  cry  so  for?  There,  now,  you  t'n  go  to 
sleep,  now,  can't  ye,  papa?" 

And  the  youthful  nurse  wiped  all  the  tears 
from  his  patient's  eyes,  tucked  the  bedclothes 
around  him  and  dragged  the  wet  and  soiled  under- 
clothes into  the  bathroom,  cheerfully  whistling 
"Old  Kentucky  Home,"  his  favorite  tune.  Five 
minutes  later  the  happy  son  appeared  before  his 
mother,  capped  and  coated  again,  asking  for  the 
privilege  to  go  over  and  see  his  grandpa. 

"No,  dear,  not  tonight,"  she  replied.  "It  will 
soon  be  bedtime." 

Without  further  ado  the  contented  Prince 
whistled  his  way  through  the  house  to  the  back 
yard  where  stood  his  old  drygoods  box  which  he 
had  made  and  unmade  a  dozen  times  into  a  house, 
a  barn,  an  office,  a  store,  a  railroad  station  and 
many  other  buildings  too  numerous  to  mention. 

That  evening  the  mother,  son  and  daughter, 
Ina,  just  entering  her  teens,  ate  their  supper  in 
silence,  except  now  and  then  an  interruption  by 
Arthur — the  life  of  the  home  and  a  chatterbox 
without  a  peer.  When  the  trio  had  adjourned  to 
the  sittingroom  and  the  hour  for  Arthur  to  retire 
for  t^ie  night  approached,  his  cousin  Ed  Slocum 
dropped  in  to  spend  a  few  minutes  with  his  aunt 
and  the  children,  but,  incidentally  of  course,  to 
learn  the  condition  in  which  his  uncle  arrived 
home  and  the  reception  he  received  on  his  arrival. 
No  sooner  had  he  hung  his  overcoat  and  hat  in 
the  hall  than  Arthur  had  him  by  the  hand,  led 
him  to  a  chair  and  climbed  onto  his  cousin's 


PRINCE  ARTHUR  145 

knees  as  soon  as  that  personage  had  seated  him- 
self in  a  comfortable  position. 

"I'm  awful  glad  ye  turn  over,  cousin  Ed. 
Mama'll  let  me  stay  up  a  little  longer,  now.  I 
don't  like  to  go  to  bed,  do  you,  cousin  Ed?  Oh 
say!  would  ye  b'lieve  it?  Papa  got  dwunk  to- 
day and  dest  mopped  the  gutter  wive  his  best 
suit.  My,  but  he  was  a  sight!  Dest  dobbed  wive 
dirt  an'  soppin'  wet.  I  helped  'im  to  bed.  Mama 
wouldn't  touch  'im  a  single  bit.  Why,  he  couldn't 
walk  a  step.  The  p'liceman  had  to  git  'im  in  the 
house.  I  wish  ye  could  a  seed  'im,  cousin  Ed." 

"Yes,  I  would  liked  to  have  seen  him.  Great 
sport,  wasn't  it?" 

"Well,  I  should  say  so!  Dess  I'll  soon  be  a 
man  and  den  I  t'n  get  dwunk  too. — Say,  cousin 
Ed,  what  makes  dem  red  streaks  in  your  eyes 
dest  like  papa's?"  The  boy  had  swung  round  on 
his  cousin's  knees  and  had  begun  to  finger  his 
eyes  and  nose  and  ears  in  true  childish  fashion. 
His  face  was  very  close  to  that  of  his  cousin 
when  he  exclaimed  in  a  sort  of  suppressed  tone, 
at  the  same  time  drawing  his  face  to  one  side, 
"Your  bref  don't  smell  very  dood,  cousin  Ed. 
It's  dest  like  papa's  is.  Be  you  dwunk  too?" 

"Oh,  no,  Arthur,  I'm  sober  as  a  judge.  You 
don't  suppose  I  would  do  such  a  thing  as  that,  do 
you  Arthur?" 

"I  don't  know.  It  would  spoil  dem  good 
clothes  an'  mus  dat  nice  tie,  awful."  His  chubby 
fingers  had  already  been  nearly  all  over  the  piece 
of  neckwear  mentioned.  "Now,  honest,  cousin 
Ed,  did  you  ever  get  dwunk?" 

The  young  man  blushed  a  little  and  made  be- 
lieve he  did  not  hear  the  question  put  to  him  but 


146  A  FAST  GAME 

he  turned  and  remarked  to  Mrs.  Norwood,  "What 
a  change  in  the  weather  we  have  had  today,  aunt 
Clarissa!  It  seems  like  a  summer  night  as  com- 
pared with  this  morning." 

"Yes,  the  change  has  been  very  acceptable," 
she  calmly  replied.  "We  had  a  beautiful  sunset 
this  evening." 

"Now,  cousin  Ed,  you  dest  answer  my  question," 
broke  in  Arthur  as  he  added  pursuasive  force  to 
his  appeal  by  twisting  the  nose  of  his  inattentive 
listener.  "Did  you  ever  get  dwunk?" 

"Arthur!  Stop  your  questions  now  or  I  will 
put  you  to  bed,"  sharply  spoke  up  his  mother. 

"I'll  be  dood,  mama,"  cheerfully  responded  the 
little  question-box,  sliding  out  of  his  cousin's 
arms,  scampering  across  the  floor,  climbing  into 
his  mother's  arms  and  snuggling  close  up  in  her 
loving  embrace. 

"Do  you  fink  it's  nice  to  put  a  little  boy  all  alony 
in  a  dark  room  by  hisself,  mama?"  murmured 
the  darling  as  the  sleepy  powders  began  to  take 
effect  and  the  tired  little  legs  hung  listlessly  over 
his  mother's  knees.  The  jabbering  mouth  opened 
with  a  yawn  while  the  sandman  shook  his  box  of 
dust  into  the  sticking  eyelids.  But  the  honor  of 
being  up  an  hour  later  than  usual  bedtime,  parti- 
ally, at  least,  overcame  the  somniferous  tendency 
of  the  body  and  he  began  again, 

"Mama,  does  cousin — Ed  get  dwunk — like 
papa?" 

"Hush,  dear,  you  must  not  ask  such  questions." 

"W-h-y?"  with  another  yawn  ending  in  a  little 
hum. 

"Oh,  because!"  slowly  answered  the  fond 
mother. 


PRINCE  ARTHUR  147 

"But,  does  'e,  mama?" 

"There,  be  still,  now  and  don't  ask  any  more 
questions." 

A  hush  fell  on  the  occupants  of  the  room, 
broken  only  by  the  easy  movement  of  the  rocking 
chair  on  the  carpet  and  the  slight  friction  of  the 
leaves  in  the  post-card  album  at  which  Ed  was 
looking.  The  little  eyelids  closed  and  the  elder 
occupants  of  the  room  began  to  breathe  easier 
when,  to  their  discomfort,  the  question-box 
opened  again  and  piped  out,  "Mama,  did  Jesus 
get  dwunk?  " 

"No,  dear.     Now  go  to  sleep." 

"Why  didn't  he,  mama?"  quickly  asked  the 
full  awake  boy,  sitting  bolt  upright  and  looking 
squarely  into  the  face  of  his  instructor. 

"Jesus  was  a  good  man  and  never  did  anything 
wrong." 

"Is  it  naughty  to  get  dwunk,  mama?"  The 
little  eyes  opened  widely  now  and  the  active  mind 
drew  its  logical  conclusions. 

"Yes,  dear." 

She  pulled  the  diminutive  reasoner  back  to 
her  bosom  where  he  nestled  for  a  moment,  then, 
turning  up  his  innocent  face  to  that  of  his  mother, 
murmured,  "Mama?" 

'What,  dear?" 

'Did  you  say  dat  Jesus  didn't  get  dwunk?" 

'Yes,  dear." 

'Dood  mans  don't  get  dwunk,  do  dey,  mama?" 

'No,  darling.     Now  hark!" 

'Papa  ain't  a  dood  man,  be  he,  mama?" 

'Arthur,  I  say,  hark  your  noise." 

'An'  cousin  Ed  ain't  a  dood  man,  eever,  be  he, 
mama?" 


148  A  FAST  GAME 

"Now  I  shall  take  you  right  upstairs  to  bed. 
You  have  pestered  us  long  enough  with  your 
questions." 

Suiting  the  action  to  her  words  the  little  fellow 
was  half  led  and  half  dragged  out  of  the  room 
and  up  the  stairway.  When  he  passed  his  cousin 
he  sleepily  drawled  out,  "Dood-night,  cousin  Ed; 
I  shan't  get  dwunk  when  I  get  big." 

A  few  minutes  later,  after  he  had  breathed  his 
trundle-bed  prayer,  he  sprang  to  his  feet  like  a 
rubber  boy,  threw  his  arms  around  his  mother's 
neck,  gave  her  a  final  hug  and  good-night  kiss 
and  bounded  into  bed,  murmuring,  "I'm  going 
to  be  like  Jesus,  mama,  an'  not  get  dwunk." 

Though  the  mother  thought  nothing  of  the 
solemn  vow  of  her  son  the  words  did  not  fall  on 
deaf  ears.  The  heavenly  Father  heard  with 
pleasure  the  promise  of  his  child  while  the  earthly 
father,  in  the  adjoining  sleeping  apartment, 
rolling  in  wakefulness  and  shame,  felt  the  innocent 
words  cut  his  heart  like  a  cold  blade  in  the  breast 
of  a  soldier.  The  remainder  of  the  night  the 
watches  were  long  and  sleep  went  from  his  eyes. 

While  Mr.  Norwood  read  his  paper  before  the 
open  grate  the  next  morning  and  while  he  waited 
breakfast,  the  newsy  headlines  of  the  sheet 
danced  before  his  eyes,  and  the  impressions  of 
the  substance  therein  read,  lay  vague  and  indis- 
tinct in  his  mental  consciousness.  In  those  quiet 
moments  of  confused  meditation  he  heard  "pittypat 
and  tippytoe"  stealing  over  the  soft  carpet.  His 
paper  was  pulled  back  like  the  flap  of  a  miniature 
tent,  and  a  pair  of  bright  eyes  peeped  up  from 
under  his  arm.  But  the  father  seemed  completely 
absorbed  in  his  reading;  so  much  so,  that  the  son, 


PRINCE  ARTHUR  149 

without  being  invited,  gripped  into  the  elder's 
clothing  and,  by  dint  of  pulling  and  climbing, 
succeeded  in  gaining  the  coveted  position  of  his 
sire's  lap.  But  the  reader  read  on.  There  was 
stillness  for  a  minute  or  two  until  the  young 
hopeful  could  endure  the  stress  no  longer.  He 
wiggled  around  on  his  knees,  getting  his  face 
toward  his  father's,  and  began  to  finger  hair  and 
ears  alternately,  with  an  occasional  twinge  of  the 
nose  to  attract  attention.  But  failing  in  these 
tactics  he  finally  addressed  the  attentive  peruser 
of  the  morning  news. 

"Be  you  dwunk,  now,  papa?  Jesus  never  got 
dwunk  an'  I  want  to  be  like  Jesus,  don't  you, 
papa?  Way,  way  up  in  heaven  where  Jesus  is 
dey  don't  have  dwunk  mans,  an'  no  naughty 
boys  lives  dere  to  frow  snowballs  at  dwunk  mans, 
eever,  do  dey,  papa?" 

The  paper  shifted  to  the  left  and  the  boy  to 
the  right  where  the  little  prattler  got  a  better 
hold  with  one  hand  in  the  longer  hair  above  the 
left  ear,  while  with  the  other  hand  he  patted  and 
rolled  and  tossed  paddy  cakes  from  the  bald  spot 
on  the  top  of  the  paternal  head.  From  this 
vantage  ground  and  at  this  stage  of  the  game  he 
continued  his  ethical  dissertation  in  earnest  and 
in  a  soliloquizing  manner. 

"I  dess  up  in  heaven  dey  don't  have  any  snow 
an'  no  rain  an'  no  trolly  tars  an'  no  p'licemans — 
an'  naughty  boys  an'  dwunk  folks."  Then  with 
an  extra  slap  on  the  hairless  oasis  and  with  a 
considerable  more  zest,  he  joyfully  exclaimed, 
"Oh,  up  dere  dey  have  candy  an'  merry-go-wounds 
an'  dancin'  bears  an' — an'  monkeys,  too,  wive 
little  red  coats  an'  funny  little  flat  noses — an', 


ISO  A  FAST  GAME 

an'  candy  to  eat  an'  popcorn  balls  an' — an' — O! 
lots  o'  nice  fings  an' — an'  papa  will  have  hair  on 
his  head  den  an' — an' — papa,  what  ye  got  skin 
on  the  top  o'  yer  head  for?  Why  don't  ye  have 
hair?  Do  dwunk  mans  have  skin  on  der  heads 
like  you,  papa?"  Then  dropping  into  the  medi- 
tative tone  he  went  on,  "Jesus  had  hair  on  his 
head  because  he  didn't  get  dwunk.  I  wish  Jesus 
was  my  papa." 

His  chubby  fingers  ran  up  through  his  own 
touseled  hair  to  experiment  and,  making  a  dis- 
covery, he  chattered  on.  "Dess  Jesus  is  my  papa 
tause  I  have  got  hair  on  my  head.  If  papa  was 
my  papa  I  would  have  skin  on  my  head.  I'm 
Jesus'  little  boy  an'  I'll  never  get  dwunk.  Wish 
papa  was  Jesus'  little  boy,  too. — Papa,  do  you 
love  Jesus?" 

The  little  bundle  of  moving  muscles  slid  down 
across  his  father's  knees  and  faced  the  paper.  As 
he  did  so  he  exclaimed  again: 

"Where  dat  rain  tome  from?  A  great  big 
drop  hit  me  on  my  hand.  O!  dere's  anozer  on 
my  face!"  and  he  drew  his  sleeve  across  his  moist 
cheek  and  looked  up  to  find  the  cloud  from  whence 
came  the  shower.  His  movement  was  so  quick 
and  unexpected  that  he  caught  his  father  looking 
down  on  his  darling  with  eyes  swimming  in  tears. 
The  sympathetic  child  sprang  up,  at  once,  threw 
his  arms  around  his  father's  neck  and,  hugging 
him  with  all  his  might,  whispered  softly  in  his 
ear,  "Papa,  what  makes  you  cry  so? — Naughty 
old  paper!" 

He  struck  the  paper  from  his  father's  hands 
and  said  spitefully,  "Naughty  old  fing,  to  make 
papa  cry!" 


PRINCE  ARTHUR  151 

The  next  instant  he  mounted  to  the  paternal 
breast  and  a  tight  hugging  followed  with  many 
whispered  words  of  wisdom  and  love  and  loyalty 
into  ears  that  heard  and  heeded.  The  splendid 
physique  of  Harry  Norwood  never  reeled  through 
the  streets  after  that  morning's  interview  with 
his  son,  and  with  his  own  conscience  and  with 
the  Holy  Spirit.  The  cold,  feelingless  virtue  of 
his  wife,  the  warning  words  of  his  pastor  and  the 
righteous  life  of  his  father-in-law,  had  appealed 
in  vain  to  him,  but  his  own  child's  prattle,  his 
loyalty  and  wisdom,  melted  his  heart  and  brought 
him  back  to  his  Father's  house  where  he  ever 
remained,  a  true  and  obedient  son.  It  is  true 
O!  God,  that  "Out  of  the  mouth  of  babes  and 
sucklings  hast  thou  ordained  strength."  That 
morning  Prince  Arthur  made  a  master  diplomatic 
stroke  for  his  King  Jesus  and  for  his  King's 
kingdom.  He  won  the  game. 


CHAPTER    X 

DISASTER   AND    DEATH 

The  March  winds  whistled  around  the  chimney 
tops  of  the  city  and  through  the  naked  limbs  of 
the  trees  and  swept  up  the  bleak  mountains, 
freighted  with  the  final  pinches  of  the  frost  king; 
while,  below  the  surface  of  the  ground  in  the  old 
Slocum  mine,  the  fatal  firedamp,  fired,  shot 
from  chamber  to  chamber  and  through  gangway 
after  gangway,  freighted  with  scorching  flame 
and  sore  destruction.  The  explosion  shook  the 
mountain  from  base  to  peak  and  filled  the  inhabi- 
tants of  the  valley  for  miles  around  with  conster- 
nation, fear  and  anxiety. 

Busy  men  and  women  and  playing  children 
rushed  into  the  streets  inquiring  what  mine  or 
powder  mill  had  been  blown  up.  Nearly  every 
family  in  the  city  had  either  a  representative  or 
representative  interests  in  some  one  or  more  of 
these  many  dangerous  places  of  labor.  The 
suspense,  however,  lasted  but  a  moment.  A 
cloud  of  coal  dust  burst  from  the  fated  shaft, 
and,  almost  instantly  a  sheet  of  flame  following 
it,  told  the  news  to  the  people  in  sight  of  the 
breaker,  while  the  telephone  did  the  rest.  The 
old  Slocum  breaker  was  of  the  old  type,  built 
over  the  shaft. 

Those,  who  had  loved  ones  in  the  mine,  rushed 
152 


DISASTER  AND  DEATH  153 

to  the  burning  breaker  and  timbers  in  the  shaft; 
many  idlers  and  loafers  followed  at  a  slower  pace; 
others  stood  watching  and  discussing  the  burning 
pile  from  their  several  view  points;  but  the  great 
majority  of  the  inhabitants  heard  the  news  with 
interest,  listlessly  heard  the  fire  engines  pass 
their  home  or  place  of  business  and  returned  to 
their  work  as  if  nothing  had  happened  out  of  the 
ordinary.  And,  in  fact,  such  an  event,  though 
by  no  means  an  everyday  occurrence,  has  become 
altogether  too  common  in  the  anthracite  regions, 
because  a  mine  accident,  leaving  death  in  its 
track,  is  a  frequent  happening. 

"A  study  of  the  reports  of  the  inspectors  for 
the  four  anthracite  districts  in  Lackawanna  county 
for  the  year  1903  abounds  in  interest  to  all  con- 
cerned in  the  huge  industry,  both  operator  and 
miner  alike,  in  as  much  as  it  reveals  two  impor- 
tant facts,  a  material  increase  in  the  output  and 
a  deplorable  shrinkage  in  the  number  of  tons 
mined  per  fatal  accident." 

The  latter  is  the  more  remarkable  feature, 
demonstrating  that  coal  mining  in  that  county 
is  becoming  more  perilous,  notwithstanding  the 
numerous  safeguards  in  the  shape  of  legislative 
enactments  and  life  saving  appliances.  During 
the  above  named  year  the  average  number  of 
tons  mined  per  life  lost  was  one  hundred  and 
sixty-one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  eighty- 
nine  while  in  the  previous  year  the  average  was 
two  hundred  and  forty-three  thousand  six  hun- 
dred and  ninety-three.  In  justice,  however,  to 
all  parties  it  is  a  fact  that  about  one-half  of  the 
accidents  are  due  to  carelessness  in  the  fall  of 
roof  and  coal.  Even  at  this  figure,  the  mortality 


154  A  FAST  GAME 

rate  is  alarming,  to  say  nothing  of  the  minor 
accidents  which  maim,  mar  and  cripple  their 
victims  for  life.  The  blue  scars  on  the  miners 
are  more  common  and  far  more  conspicuous  and 
honorable  than  the  India  ink  prints  on  the  bodies 
of  the  sailor  boys. 

While  anxiety  and  excitement  and  indifference 
and  business  prevailed  above  the  ground,  what 
of  the  poor  fellows  caught  beneath?  If  they  had 
escaped  the  scorching  firedamp,  could  they  escape 
the  chokedamp  which  always  follows?  The  first 
named  gas  burns  to  death,  the  second  chokes  to 
death.  In  either  case  the  mode  of  death  is 
horrible,  unless,  in  case  of  the  firedamp,  when 
the  violence  of  the  explosion  hurls  its  victims 
against  the  walls  of  the  chambers,  causing  in- 
stantaneous death.  The  jar  from  the  explosion 
in  the  Slocum  mine  disabled  the  fan.  This  cut 
off  the  supply  of  fresh  air.  There  was  another 
opening  into  the  mine  farther  up  the  hillside 
through  which  the  unfortunate  men  might  escape; 
provided,  that  they  were  able  to  reach  the  smaller 
shaft  and  had  sufficient  strength  remaining  to 
climb  the  long  ladders  which  reached  up  to  day- 
light; and,  provided,  that  the  ladders  had  not 
been  thrown  down  or  fired  and  the  air  in  that 
region  had  become  vitiated  as  well  as  in  the 
other  parts  of  the  mine. 

While  the  gathered  throng  watched  the  slow 
but  sure  fire,  burning  more  in  the  breaker  than 
in  the  shaft,  it  suddenly  increased  in  violence 
and  burned  as  if  fanned  from  the  forge  of  Vulcan. 
The  draft  up  the  shaft  was  tremendous.  In  spite 
of  the  efforts  of  the  firemen,  in  less  than  a  half 
hour  the  breaker,  the  trestling  and  a  part  of  the 


DISASTER  AND  DEATH  155 

timbering  in  the  shaft,  smoked  in  heat  and  ruins. 
The  progress  of  the  fire  had  been  phenomenal 
under  any  circumstance  but  especially  so,  when 
the  explosion  had  filled  the  mine  with  the  non- 
combustible  carbonic  chokedamp.  In  the  mean- 
while, when  all  hope  of  rescue  had  been  cut  off, 
the  anxious  watchers  received  the  intelligence  that 
a  rescue  party  had  already  entered  the  mine  and 
found  their  comrades,  some  alive  and  some  dead. 

This  news  brought  a  wail  of  heartbreaking 
agony  from  the  wives  and  mothers  and  sisters 
around  the  burning  breaker.  The  possibility  that 
some  were  alive  and  that  some  were  dead,  gave 
to  each  hope  mingled  with  suspense  as  to  which 
ones  must  be  left  in  loneliness  and  which  ones 
would  receive  their  loved  ones  back  safe  and 
sound.  John  Ransom,  Sr.,  the  superintendent  of 
the  mine,  ran  about  frantic  with  excitement, 
bewailing  the  misfortune  and  avowing  that  all 
were  lost  and  that  the  emergency  shaft  and 
timbers  had  been  crippled.  Under  such  distress- 
ing prospects,  news  of  a  rescue  and  in  so  short  a 
time  were  incredible,  nevertheless,  even  though 
it  were  a  false  rumor,  it  revived  hope,  yet  hope 
born  of  fear. 

At  this  stage  of  wild  excitement  and  suspense 
the  rapid  driving  of  several  ambulances  towards 
the  new  Diamond  shaft  confirmed  the  rumor,  or, 
at  least,  proved  that  more  than  one  person  from 
somewhere  in  the  immediate  vicinity  would  re- 
ceive speedy  medical  aid.  No  sooner  had  the 
ambulances  passed  out  of  sight  up  the  hill  than 
two  men  came  in  sight  down,  the  one  leading 
the  other.  Mrs.  Andrew  Morgan  screamed  and 


156  A  FAST  GAME 

ran  toward  them  shouting,  "Oh,  Onie,  my  son, 
Onie!  Lost  and  found!  Thank  God!" 

When  the  strong  mother  hugged  her  staggering 
son  to  her  breast  the  crowd  knew  that  he  had 
been  working  in  the  ill-fated  mine  and  had  been 
rescued.  A  shout  of  triumph  rent  the  air.  The 
half  frantic  multitude  rejoiced  to  see  Owen  Morgan 
still  alive.  The  stalwart  son  swooned  in  his 
mother's  arms.  His  companion  then  told  the 
inquiring  people  that  the  escape  had  been  made 
through  the  Diamond  mine.  The  fact  was  this. 
For  several  weeks  Tom  Boland  had  pushed  the 
work  along  a  certain  gangway  which,  from  cer- 
tain surveys  and  calculations,  he  knew  would 
open  ere  long  into  the  same  vein  of  coal  then 
being  mined  in  the  old  Slocum  mine.  For  reasons 
of  safety  and  emergency  to  both  mines,  he  had 
forced  the  work  in  that  certain  breast. 

When  the  explosion  took  place  in  the  old  mine, 
the  partition  between  that  and  the  new  workings 
was  so  thin  that  it  partially  blew  in,  shaking  up 
the  miners  to  a  limited  extent  and  allowing  some 
little  gas  and  dust  to  enter,  but  it  did  no  damage. 
The  wrecked  partition  was  at  once  told  to  Tom 
who  chanced  to  be  within  easy  call.  He  immed- 
iately ordered  the  speed  of  the  fans  increased 
and  the  workmen  to  enlarge  the  opening.  Within 
ten  minutes  from  the  first  alarm  the  entrance 
from  the  new  mine  to  the  old  had  been  enlarged 
to  a  third  the  size  of  an  ordinary  gangway  and 
the  pure  air  forced  through  it  with  a  terrific 
current.  The  fire  in  the  woodwork  naturally 
made  a  chimney  of  the  shaft.  The  chokedamp, 
though  heavier  than  pure  air,  was  more  or  less 
forced  up  the  shaft  and  the  mine  emptied  of  the 


DISASTER  AND  DEATH  157 

death  dealing  gas  and  filled  with  the  ozone  of 
life. 

And  is  it  any  wonder  that  the  timbers  and 
breaker  burned  so  rapidly  under  the  pressure 
of  so  extensive  a  blower?  Tom  knew  full  well 
that  there  was  no  salvation  for  the  woodwork, 
anyway,  unless,  perchance,  a  downpour  of  water 
from  the  fire  engines  might  save  some  timbers 
in  the  shaft  and  there  could  be  no  possible  harm 
done  in  pursuing  the  course  he  had  commenced  so 
long  as  human  life  could  be  saved  by  so  doing. 
His  knowledge  of  the  old  mine,  his  familiarity 
with  the  new,  and  his  quick  and  cool  judgment, 
made  him  the  emergency  man  of  the  hour.  At 
the  crucial  moment  he  proved  his  worth  and  added 
new  laurels  to  his  rapidly  increasing  reputation. 

No  sooner  had  the  hole  in  the  partition  been 
sufficiently  enlarged  and  the  draft  set  in  from 
the  Diamond  to  the  Slocum  mine,  than  rescuers 
crawled  through  the  opening  and  followed  up 
the  fresh  air  in  search  of  their  comrades.  It 
was  some  little  distance  before  the  miners  of 
the  new  mine  came  to  the  breasts  where  the 
miners  of  the  old  mine  had  been  actually  engaged. 
Without  difficulty,  however,  they  reached  the 
several  places.  Then  the  awful  disaster  began 
to  show  itself. 

Here  they  found  a  man  stark  dead  with  cloth- 
ing burned  and  body  scorched;  here  another, 
mangled  to  death,  hurled  against  a  pillar  of  coal 
by  the  terrific  force  of  the  explosion;  over  yonder 
another  without  a  mark  on  his  body,  choked  to 
death  by  the  afterdamp;  and  from  some  jagged 
crag  near  the  roof  came  an  ominous  voice  in  the 
darkness,  informing  the  searching  party  of  a 


158  A  FAST  GAME 

more  fortunate  fellow  who  had  been  able  to 
throw  himself  on  his  face  before  the  hot  tongue 
of  flame  licked  him  and  who  afterwards  was  able 
to  rise  and  climb  out  of  reach  of  the  heavy  after- 
gas  which  settled  and  crept  along  the  gangways 
like  a  fiend  of  death.  Perhaps  three  fourths  of 
the  mine  workers,  all  of  whom  had  been  given 
up  by  their  friends  as  lost,  survived  the  awful 
disaster.  Some  were  able  to  walk,  others  con- 
scious but  helpless,  and  still  others  entirely  over- 
come by  the  gas.  Among  the  latter  group  Tom 
found  Erastus  Boland  with  many  bruises  about 
the  body.  With  the  other  disabled  ones  they 
hurried  him  to  the  surface  and  thence  to  the 
hospital  where  he  lingered  a  few  days  and  died, 
never  regaining  consciousness. 

Poor  old  Ras  Boland  had  gone  to  his  reward 
a  sober  man,  denounced  by  the  union  as  a  scab, 
called  a  jolly  toper  by  his  associates,  missed  by 
a  sorrowing  and  speechless  family,  and  his  name 
crossed  off  the  time  book  of  the  Slocum  colliery. 
He  had  played  his  game. 

"Some  one  had  blundered."  Disasters  may 
be  providential  but  a  careless  or  otherwise  human 
hand  presses  the  button  that  starts  the  machinery 
of  devastation.  The  Slocum  mine  calamity  could 
be  no  exception.  "Who  must  bear  the  blame? 
Or  who  could  be  so  indifferent  to  duty  or  evil  in 
purpose  as  to  put  his  fellow  man  to  death  and 
bring  destruction  of  property  to  his  employer? 
Certainly  the  crime  lay  at  the  door  of  a  responsible 
party  and  he  an  employe. 

The  duty  of  a  fireboss  is  to  inspect  the  mine 
before  the  miners  enter  to  their  daily  tasks  and 
to  see  to  it  that  no  gas  is  present  in  dangerous 


DISASTER  AND  DEATH  159 

quantities,  and  should  there  be  any  present,  to 
clear  the  chambers  of  the  fluid.  Frank  Ransom 
was  the  fireboss  in  the  Slocum  mine.  The  follow- 
ing day  he  appeared  before  The  Black  Diamond 
Company,  at  their  summons,  to  render  an  account 
of  the  performance  of  his  legitimate  duties  pre- 
vious to  the  dire  fatality.  The  superintendents 
of  both  mines,  some  of  the  foremen  and  bosses 
and  a  few  miners  were  also  present  at  the  hearing. 

Frank  was  no  favorite  among  the  men.  They 
naturally  believed  that  he  held  his  position  by 
virtue  of  his  father  being  superintendent  rather 
than  by  competency  and  desert.  Therefore, 
it  is  not  surprising,  that  many  of  the  fellows 
secretly  hoped  that  he  would  be  found  guilty 
of  negligence  and  be  dismissed  from  further  service. 
But  they  could  find  no  evidence  sufficient  to 
condemn.  On  the  contrary,  his  own  testimony, 
and  that  of  his  brother  John,  who  had  that  very 
morning  accompanied  him  on  his  round  of  in- 
spection, cleared  him  from  all  responsibility 
in  the  case,  as  both  bore  corroberative  testimony 
that  the  chambers  were  free  from  gas  at  the  time 
of  their  visit. 

"No  combustion  of  gas  manifested  itself  by  our 
safety  lamp  during  our  entire  perambulatory 
examination,"  said  the  fluent  John  Ransom,  Jr., 
"Frank,  my  brother,  inspected  every  breast 
with  careful  consideration  and  scrutiny  allowing 
no  detail  of  his  occupation  to  escape  his  scientific 
investigation." 

"What  was  you  skylarkin'  around  with  Frank 
fur,  anyway?"  inquired  Uncle  Hiram  Slocum. 

"Pardon  me,  Mr.  Slocum,  but  Frank  and  I  are 
exceptionally  ^affectionate  brothers  and  conse- 


160  A  FAST  GAME 

quently  associate  together  as  much  as  possible 
and  practicable." 

"Hugh!  I  don't  see  nothin'  very  practical 
about  taggin'  after  a  feller  when  you've  got  no 
business  with  'im  an'  he's  got  'nough  to  tend  to 
without  a  trailer."  Then  as  if  disgusted  with 
his  witness  he  turned  to  the  engineer  and  asked, 
"Joe,  did  you  let  the  fireboss  down  the  mornin' 
o'  the  explosion?" 

"I  can't  swear  to  it,  Mr.  Slocum.  I  dropped 
the  carriage  from  a  signal  at  the  usual  time  for 
the  fireboss,"  replied  the  honest  man. 

"Then  ye  didn't  see  what  ye  let  down,  whether 
it  was  a  man,  a  what  er  a  nothin'?" 

"No,  sir,  I  couldn't  say.  All  I  know  is  that 
I  lowered  and  histed  accordin'  to  the  reg'lar 
signals  fur  that  purpose  and  fur  that  time." 

"Did  ye  see  John  taggin'  'round  that  mornin'?" 

Before  he  could  answer,  for  the  engine  man 
was  slow  of  speech,  John  interrupted  by  saying 
with  noticeable  fervor,  "I  infer  from  your  interro- 
gations, Mr.  Slocum,  that  the  veracity  of  Frank 
and  me  is  under  suspicious  apprehension." 

"I  can't  help  yer  inference,  John,  ner  my 
thoughts  jest  now."  Continuing  in  the  same 
tone  though  more  addressed  to  the  company 
than  to  any  individual,  he  added,  "I  s'pose  ye 
've  all  heerd  the  old  saw  that  runs  somethin' 
like  this,  'One  boy's  a  boy,  two  boys  is  half  a 
boy  an'  three  boys  is  no  boy  't  all?'  That's 
'bout  to  the  pint  when  ye  want  a  job  done  by 
boys  an'  sometimes  some  on  us  older  chaps  don't 
git  over  our  boyish  capers."  Straightening  up 
as  if  to  recall  his  straying  thoughts  he  abruptly 
remarked,  "  'Nough  said,  John!".  Turning  to 


DISASTER  AND  DEATH  161 

the  engineer  with  a  bow,  he  concluded,  "Go  on, 
Joe." 

"I  didn't  see  nobody  but  Curley.  I  ketched 
sight  o'  his  head  jest  after  I  stopped  histin'." 

"That  is  sufficient,  men.  You  are  excused 
for  today,"  coolly  put  in  Henry  Slocum. 

While  the  men  filed  out  of  the  room  Tom  noticed 
changeable  colors  flit  over  the  face  of  John  Ran- 
som, Jr.,  that  fully  satisfied  his  own  mind  of  a 
black  handed  game  played  at  the  Slocum  disaster. 
He  arose  and  was  about  to  pass  out  with  the 
others  when  he  caught  the  eye  of  Henry  Slocum 
who  artfully  beckoned  him  to  his  desk  and  then 
turned  his  back  to  the  door.  Benjamin  retreated 
to  the  private  office,  while  Tom  leisurely  ap- 
proached the  desk  and  Uncle  Hiram  exchanged 
pleasantries  with  Eva  Morgan. 

"Come  inside,  Tom,"  abruptly  spoke  out 
Henry,  deftly  slipping  the  glasses  from  his  nose 
and  setting  a  chair  in  the  center  of  the  circle. 
"Sit  down." 

Tom  obeyed.  Benjamin  came  up  on  the  left 
and  sat  down  on  the  edge  of  his  writing  desk; 
Uncle  Hiram  sat  on  Tom's  right;  and  Henry, 
leaning  carelessly  against  his  desk,  stood  before 
him  and  acted  as  spokesman  for  the  little  company. 

"We  regret  that  Erastus  Boland  was  a  victim 
in  our  late  misfortune,  more  than  the  loss  of 
property.  You  have  our  sympathies,"  hesitat- 
ing a  moment,  he  went  on, — "and  our  confidence. 
You,  of  course,  understand  that  you  are  the 
superintendent  of  the  Diamond  mine  and  that 
you  rendered  us  invaluable  aid  when  Mr.  Boland 
was  killed.  We  have  decided,  however,  that 
your  services  are  no  longer  required;  or,  a  better 


162  A  FAST  GAME 

way  to  state  the  case,  they  are  desired  in  something 
of  more  importance,  at  least,  to  us.  Your  name 
will  stand  on  our  payroll,  and  you  will  pass  in 
the  eyes  of  the  public,  as  our  superintendent, 
but  not  in  fact. 

"Your  recent  family  sorrow  makes  an  excellent 
excuse  for  us  to  give  you  a  well  earned  leave  of 
absence,  which  we  propose  to  do.  Much  as  we 
would  like  to  grant  that  time  for  your  rest  and 
freedom  from  responsibility,  we  feel  compelled 
to  add  more  responsibility."  Nervously  twirling 
his  glasses  and  crossing  and  recrossing  his  legs 
he  went  on  while  Tom  wondered  what  new  scheme 
was  on  foot.  "There  is  a  mysterious  problem 
to  be  solved  concerning  matters  around  the  mines. 
Recent  developments  have  aroused  our  suspicions 
as  never  before.  You,  we  think,  are  the  best 
qualified  man  to  solve  the  problem.  Do  you 
understand  what  I  mean?" 

"I  think  I  do,  Mr.  Slocum,  but  I  had  much 
rather  remain  in  my  present  position  than  under- 
take to  unravel  this  snarl,  and  besides,  you  are 
placing  a  whole  lot  of  responsibility  on  a  pair  of 
inexperienced  shoulders.  I  surely  appreciate  past 
favors  but  feel  entirely  incompetent  to  carry  out 
your  wishes  in  this  matter." 

"We  assume  all  risk,  Mr.  Boland.  No  necessities, 
which  you  may  desire,  will  be  lacking  and  your 
time  and  location  are  at  your  own  disposal,  but 
we  do  consider  ourselves  obligated  to  commission 
you  to  do  the  work." 

"Ye  ought  to  take  it  as  a  leetle  honor/'  broke 
in  Uncle  Hiram,  with  a  smile,  "that  The  Black 
Diamond  Company  picks  ye  out  o'  so  many  in 


DISASTER  AND  DEATH  163 

this  world  o'  graft  an'  greed  as  a  young  chap  o' 
grit  an'  gumption." 

"Thank  you,  Mr.  Slocum.  I  fully  appreciate 
the  compliment." 

"We  make  but  one  request,"  resumed  Henry, 
"and  that  is,  that  you  attempt  the  task.  Will 
you  do  it?" 

Everything  in  the  room  was  motionless  and 
silent  except  the  rapid  clicking  of  the  typewriter 
and  Tom's  fingers  nervously  and  rapidly  drum- 
ming on  the  arm  of  his  chair  while  he  looked 
thoughtfully  at  the  floor.  He  saw  no  floor,  how- 
ever, for  his  mind's  eyesight  completely  enveloped 
his  physical  vision.  He  shrank  from  the  enter- 
prise, shuddered  at  the  thought  of  the  risk  and 
responsibility  incurred,  philosophized  on  the  course 
to  be  pursued  and  the  ultimate  issues,  reasoned 
from  suppositional  premises  and  drew  his  logical 
conclusions  in  flashes. 

Uncle  Hiram  had  shifted  his  elbows  to  his 
knees  and  sat  drumming  his  cane  between  his 
feet.  Henry  had  begun  again  to  twirl  his  glasses, 
Benjamin  prodded  his  pencil  through  and  through 
an  ink  blotter,  the  typewriter  rattled  away  and 
Tom's  fingers  drummed  on.  The  trio  willingly 
and  patiently  granted  their  time  to  get  their 
man  and  the  man  cogitated  the  scheme  that 
would  best  benefit  the  trio.  Another  pause. 
Tom  finally  lifted  his  eyes  to  those  of  Henry. 
He  flushed  and  under  strong  emotion,  made 
answer,  "I'll  try." 

"That  is  sufficient,"  he  quickly  responded, 
taking  his  secret  agent  by  the  hand.  "Go! 
You  have  your  freedom,  your  commission  and 
your  secret." 


164  A  FAST  GAME 

Tom  arose,  warmly  grasped  the  offered  hand 
and  went  out  of  the  room  without  another  word. 
Early  twilight  hung  over  the  city.  Heavy  storm 
clouds  settled  lower  and  lower  and  massed  them- 
selves more  and  more  compactly.  Even  while 
he  hurried  along  the  half  deserted  streets,  mist 
began  to  fall  with  an  occasional  drop  of  rain  that 
splashed  the  walk  and  froze  where  it  fell.  The 
weather  was  gloomy  enough  but  no  more  so  than 
the  mood  of  Tom  Boland.  He  might  have  taken 
a  car  for  home  and  saved  much  time  and  weariness 
but  his  mental  perturbation  counseled  him  to 
walk,  which  advice  he  heeded  and  strode  on  into 
the  deepening  darkness. 

The  crape  on  the  door  of  his  dwelling  place 
brought  him  to  his  senses.  He  paused  a  moment 
on  the  steps,  turned  the  knob  and  entered.  His 
mother  rocked  back  and  forth,  nervous  and 
fidgety,  and  near  her  sat  Naomi  holding  her  hand 
and  talking  softly  and  cheerfully  and  sympathet- 
ically. Sorrow  could  not  live  long  in  Naomi's 
presence.  Her  words  and  manner  acted  on  Mrs. 
Boland's  clouded  life  like  sunshine  after  showers. 
Care  seemed  to  flee  from  the  tear-stained  cheeks, 
new  light  and  hope  to  beam  from  the  reddened 
eyes,  and  a  faint  smile  play  over  the  sad  face. 
Fresh  wounds  slowly  but  surely  yielded  to  the 
healing  qualities  of  the  balm  of  love. 

When  Tom  entered  the  room  Naomi  arose  and 
greeted  him  with  the  cordiality  of  a  sister.  He 
felt  her  angelic  manner,  appreciated  it  and  passed 
on  to  his  own  room  where  he  might  overcome 
his  own  multitudinous  feelings  which  had  been 
aroused  by  his  many  kindnesses  from  friends 
and  their  confidence  in  him.  Once  in  the  room 


DISASTER  AND  DEATH  165 

and  the  door  shut,  he  fell  on  his  knees  and  relieved 
the  anguish  and  tumult  of  his  soul  in  an  earnest 
conversation  with  his  Heavenly  Father — his  friend 
and  counselor  at  all  times.  The  solace  came 
and  also  did  the  plan  for  his  future  course  of 
action.  Instead  of  confusion  of  thought  and 
surging  emotions,  a  conscious  conception  of 
divine  leadership  directed  him  and  a  peaceful 
presence  pervaded  his  entire  being.  He  felt 
that  he  not  only  lived  but  that  he  lived  with  a 
fixed  purpose  to  carry  out  the  plans  so  definitely 
laid  before  him. 

He  carefully  arranged  his  toilet  and  descended 
to  the  women  in  the  sittingroom  under  perfect 
self-control  and  in  his  accustomed  congenial, 
though  more  serious,  manner.  Naomi  had  al- 
ready risen  to  go  and  stood  with  her  hand  on  the 
door  knob  when  he  entered  the  room.  Night 
and  storm  and  slippery  sidewalks  prevailed 
outside — an  excellent  excuse  for  Tom  to  accom- 
pany the  fearless  girl  home  or  see  her  safely  on 
board  a  car.  He,  therefore,  promptly  excused 
himself  from  his  mother  and  offered  his  services 
to  Naomi,  which  graciousness  she  as  promptly 
accepted. 

"Mr.  Boland,  I  am  so  glad  you  have  come  with 
me.  I  wanted  to  just  tell  you  how  deeply  I  feel 
for  you  in  this  your  grief,  and  also  to  congratulate 
you  on  your  thoughtful  and  heroic  work  for  the 
salvation  of  the  poor  fellows  who  were  caught 
in  the  old  mine,"  earnestly  spoke  Naomi  as  soon 
as  they  had  reached  the  street.  "Papa  and 
Uncle  Henry  and  grandfather  are  loud  in  your 
praise  and  declare  that  you  saved  the  lives  of 
those  who  escaped.  I  am  quite  sure  they  think 


166  A  FAST  GAME 

there  is  foul  play  somewhere  but  they  are  very 
quiet  in  expressing  themselves.  Oh,  Tom,  these 
times  are  awful!  You  can  hardly  trust  your 
best  friends.  It  is  so  refreshing  to  find  someone 
once  in  a  while  in  whom  you  may  have  full  con- 
fidence and  which  confidence  will  not  be  betrayed." 

While  she  spoke  in  a  subdued  voice  she  drew 
up  closer  to  Tom  and  hugged  his  arm  to  hers  as 
if  to  express  herself  in  the  strongest  language 
possible  that  she  trusted  him  above  all  others 
outside  of  her  immediate  family,  yes,  even  more 
than  she  trusted  her  brother,  Edwin. 

"I  am  very  grateful  to  you  for  your  kind  and 
encouraging  words,  prizing  their  value  more 
because  I  believe  them  to  be  spoken  without 
flattery  or  vanity.  And  besides,  I  want  to  signify 
my  esteem  for  the  character  behind  the  words — 
a  character,  in  my  humble  judgment,  which  is 
worthy  of  confidence  to  the  utmost — but  here  is 
the  street-car  line  and  the  car  is  coming  yonder." 

"Thank  you,  Mr.  Boland,  for  your  helpful 
expressions  of  fidelity  as  well  as  your  company 
thus  far;  and,  perhaps,  I  transgress  the  law  of 
feminine  modesty,  when  I  say  that  I  would  rather 
walk  in  trustfulness  tonight  than  to  ride  in 
distrust." 

"Pardon  me,  Miss  Slocum,  for  my  unintentional 
discourtesy.  I  meant  well,"  fervently  replied 
Tom.  "Nothing  will  give  me  more  pleasure  than 
to  see  you  safely  at  your  door.  If  I  understand 
your  intimation  I  am  positive  that  the  pleasure 
of  this  walk  and  talk  will  be  both  confidential  and 
mutual." 

Thus,  arm  in  arm,  the  happy  two  passed  down 
the  west  hill,  by  The  Anthracite  and  the  fish  stand, 


DISASTER  AND  DEATH  167 

across  the  Lackawanna  river  bridge  and  up  the 
other  side,  perfectly  oblivious  to  places  or  pedes- 
trians. Three  blocks  above  the  bridge  a  stalwart 
man  emerged  from  the  shadows  and  accosted  Tom. 

"Mr.  Bolan',  kin  I  git  a  job  in  the  Di'mond 
mine?  I'm  off  now  an'  want  work." 

Tom  and  Naomi  slowed  up  in  their  rapid  walk 
and  the  unknown  man  strode  along  beside  Tom. 

"Oh,  good-evening,  Curley!  It  is  you,  is  it? 
Come  up  to  my  office  tomorrow  and  we  can  fix 
you  up.  Good-night!"  coolly  replied  Tom  while 
he  noticed  the  agitated  condition  of  his  friend 
of  the  dark  visage  and  caught  the  gleam  of  shining 
metal  in  one  of  his  hands. 

Naomi  saw  nothing  of  the  kind  but  did  wonder 
why  her  companion  hurried  her  along  without 
further  conversation.  Once  out  of  earshot  the 
girl  remarked,  "What  an  ugly  looking  fellow  he 
is!  Is  he  a  friend  of  yours?" 

"Why,  I  guess  so.  I  have  known  him  for  some 
time;  in  fact,  he  worked  for  me  on  the  Diamond 
breaker,"  meditatively  responded  Tom. 

The  conversation  on  the  part  of  Tom  lagged 
for  the  remainder  of  the  way  and  Naomi  was  not 
a  little  surprised  at  the  evident  change  in  his 
mood  and  bade  him  good-night  with  a  strange 
foreboding  of  evil  and  intense  anxiety  for  Tom's 
welfare. 

Tom  went  home  this  time  by  trolley.  Wrapped 
in  thought  and  yet  on  the  alert  he  caught  sight 
of  the  dark  figure  at  the  corner  as  the  car  hummed 
by.  He  realized  the  disappointment  Curley  would 
have  when  no  Tom  returned  that  way,  congratu- 
lated himself  on  his  providential  escape  and 
settled  on  the  future  detailed  procedure. 


168  A  FAST  GAME 

Curley  did  not  appear  at  the  office  of  the  Dia- 
mond mine  the  next  day,  nor  the  next,  but  on  the 
third  day  he  came  and  with  him  a  companion  in 
hard  luck,  Mike  Ruhlin  by  name.  Tom  was  not 
in  at  the  time  but  by  order  of  his  assistant,  who 
had  been  instructed  to  give  Curley  a  job  if  he 
came,  both  received  employment — Mike  as  a 
miner  and  Curley  as  his  helper  or  laborer. 


CHAPTER    XI 

WHITE    AND    BLACK    SLAVES 

The  afternoon  of  the  day  on  which  Erastus 
Boland  was  buried  John  Ransom,  Jr.,  entered 
the  office  of  The  Black  Diamond  Company  and 
humbly  requested  a  few  minutes  of  their  valuable 
time,  stating  that  he  had  important  business  to 
lay  before  them.  They,  of  course,  granted  his 
request  and  bade  him  present  his  scheme  or  reveal 
his  plot  or  whatever  he  had  in  mind. 

"Of  course,  Messrs.  Slocum,  you  are  alive  to 
the  fact  that  these  are  times  of  strenuosity  and 
uncertainty  in  the  realm  of  industry,  in  the  field 
of  capital  and  labor,  as  I  may  say,"  commenced 
the  loquacious  son  of  his  father.  "It  may  be  an 
imposition  of  my  presence  before  you  this  after- 
noon and  of  my  immature  suggestion  in  com- 
parison with  your  mental  and  commercial  acumen, 
inasmuch  as  your  successful  career  in  the  field 
of  industrialism  testify  to  your  business  sagacity." 

"We  usually  attend  to  our  own  affairs  and 
consider  ourselves  capable  to  continue  the  business 
at  the  old  stand,"  interrupted  Benjamin  after 
the  speaker's  labored  effort. 

"Yes,  indeed,  Mr.  Slocum;  I  perfectly  under- 
stand the  import  of  your  remark.  I  am  neither 
here  for  self-aggrandizement  nor  for  self-emolument 
but  solely  in  the  interest  of  the  company  I  have 
169 


170  A  FAST  GAME 

the  honor  to  serve.  Now  to  the  subject  in  hand; 
perhaps  it  has  not  occurred  to  you  that  my 
position  in  the  industrial  category,  more  especially 
the  anthracite,  is  unique  and  that  I  might  be  of 
invaluable  assistance  between  you  and  the  labor- 
ing classes.  You  see  that  I  am  neither  an  operator 
nor  a  laboring  man,  in  the  colloquial  meaning 
of  the  term." 

"You  mean,  Johnnie,  a  kind  of  a  go-between!" 
interrupted  Uncle  Hiram,  who  had  quietly  entered 
unheard  by  the  intense  talker.  "Ye 're  on  the 
fence,  I  take  it!" 

"Why,  good  afternoon,  Mr.  Slocum!"  exclaimed 
John,  Jr.,  jumping  up  from  his  chair  and  bobbing 
around  it  in  that  sort  of  confusion  common  to 
those  who  hold  an  exalted  opinion  of  themselves 
and  their  abilities  and  are  invulnerable  to  a  bit 
of  sarcasm.  "I  beg  your  pardon,  but  I  did  not 
intend  to  assert,  or  intimate  even,  that  I  sat  on 
the  fence,  to  use  the  common  parlance.  My 
exact  meaning  evidences  itself  in  the  more  dig- 
nified word,  mediator.  To  resume  where  the 
interruption  occurred,  I  further  affirm,  without 
ambiguity  I  hope,  that  I  have  men  under  my 
authority,  yet,  I  am  under  your  authority,  and 
in  this  essential  midway  position  I  may  be  of 
incalculable  usefulness  to  your  company." 

"You  draw  your  salary  from  that  company, 
do  you  not?"  somewhat  curtly  asked  Benjamin. 

"Most  assuredly,  Mr.  Slocum,  and  the  check 
from  that  firm  passes  in  the  financial  market 
as  good  as  the  gold  from  the  government  mint." 

"What  ye  paid  fur,  anyway?"  put  in  Uncle 
Hiram. 

"Why,  to  look  after  the  interests  of  my  employ- 


WHITE  AND  BLACK  SLAVES  171 

ers,  most  indubitably,"  answered  John,  Jr.,  with 
a  slight  feeling  of  uneasiness  percolating  his 
general  system. 

"Well,  what  do  you  want,  then?"  queried 
Henry,  "an  increase  of  wages  or  are  you  afraid 
that  the  financial  bottom  has  fallen  out  of  our 
company?" 

"Nothing  of  the  kind,  Mr.  Slocum;  on  the 
contrary,  I  am  positive  that  your  financial  basis 
is  as  substantial  as  the  rock  of  Gibralter,  and, 
as  to  insufficient  salary,  I  am  your  servant  at 
the  present  stipulation,  in  fact,  a  slave  if  need 
be,  —  a  —  but  if  there  should  be  a  remunerative 
advancement  I  could  be  of  immeasurable  service 
as  an  agent  for  you  among  the  miners." 

"Look  a  here,  Johnnie,"  sadly  spoke  Uncle 
Hiram,  approaching  and  laying  his  hand  on  the 
shoulder  of  the  mine  foreman,  "take  a  bit  of 
advice  frum  an  ol'  man.  We  don't  keep  ser- 
vants 'round  us,  much  less,  slaves,  'specially 
slaves  to  greed.  You  say  that  ye  git  'nough 
pay  but  ye  could  do  more  if  ye  got  a  leetle  more. 
How  do  ye  make  the  parts  o'  yer  argiment  jibe? 
If  I  fig're  it  out  right,  yer  after  a  bribe — a  hunk 
o'  our  money — to  do  a  leetle  dirty  job  fur  us. 
We  don't  do  that  kind  o'  work  an'  we  don't  pay 
nobody  else  to  do  it,  if  we  know  it."  Turning 
to  his  boys  he  concluded,  "Guess  we  got  one  o' 
the  coons  treed." 

The  sweat  stood  in  beads  on  the  face  of  John 
Ransom,  Jr.,  yet  the  senior  member  of  the  firm 
put  the  advice  to  him  stiff  and  to  the  point. 

"We  hain't  got  no  positive  evidence  ag'in  ye 
but  we  ken  feel  a  mighty  lot  o'  things  that  we 
can't  swear  to.  You're  a  slave  to  Johnnie  Ran- 


172  A  FAST  GAME 

som.  You'll  never  be  a  man  till  ye  quit  'im  an' 
work  fur  somebody  else.  Yer  young,  yit,  an' 
mebbe  ye  ken  be  sombody  if  ye'll  only  try.  I 
could  put  ye  in  jail  fur  tryin'  to  git  bribes  frum 
us  but  I'll  let  ye  go  this  time.  Don't  ye  ever 
let  me  ketch  ye  at  it  ag'in  though;  if  ye  do  it'll 
go  hard  with  ye.  Don't  ye  ever  ag'in  try  to  bait 
the  old  fox  with  any  o'  yer  nasty,  leetle  tricks 
er  ye'll  git  yer  goose  cooked  an'  cooked  done,  too." 

Reaching  for  a  paper  which  Henry  handed 
him  Uncle  Hiram  continued  as  he  handed  the 
slip  to  Mr.  Ransom.  "Take  this  'ere  to  the 
timekeeper  an'  frum  him  go  to  the  cashier  an' 
git  yer  stipend,  the  last  pay  ye'll  ever  git  frum 
us.  God  pity  ye,  poor  boy!" 

While  the  old  gentleman  interviewed  his  em- 
ploye like  a  father  would  counsel  a  son,  the  under- 
ling made  several  attempts  to  protest  and  ex- 
plain his  conduct,  but  without  avail.  He  might 
as  well  have  tried  to  talk  against  a  full  fledged 
cyclone.  When  Uncle  Hiram  had  finished  his 
admonitory  peroration,  however,  Ransom  found 
an  opportunity  to  speak,  or  rather,  took  one. 

"You  have  misapprehended  the  significance 
of  my  utterances  and  I  sincerely  apologize  for 
the  ambiguity  of  my  language.  It  appears  an 
injustice  to  dismiss  an  humble  servant  without 
conclusive  evidence  of  fraudulent  practices  and 
without  conceding  to  him  the  inalienable  priv- 
ilege of  self  defence  under  the  laws — " 

"Holt,  Johnnie!  I've  give  ye  fair  warnin'  like 
a  friend  an'  I  carcalate  my  words  make  my  meanin' 
clear.  Ye  got  to  go,  but  ye  go  with  my  prayers 
fur  yer  greedy,  leetle  soul.  I  can't  help  ye  no 


WHITE  AND  BLACK  SLAVES  173 

other  way.  Ye've  stepped  over  the  line  beyond 
human  help." 

The  long  fingers  and  trembling  hand  pointed 
toward  the  door  and  a  sad  cadaverous  look  pro- 
pounded an  argument  that  could  not  be  refuted 
or  misunderstood.  Nothing,  now,  remained  for 
the  dismissed  foreman  to  do  but  to  retire  grace- 
fully and  unconditionally.  It  is  true  that  no 
positive  evidence  of  playing  two  games  at  one 
and  the  same  time  could  be  brought  against 
John,  Jr.,  or  by  his  circumlocution  could  one 
really  know  whether  he  asked  for  a  bribe  or  not, 
yet,  the  eagle  eye  of  Uncle  Hiram,  his  honest 
heart  and  mental  vision,  penetrated  the  cover- 
ing of  the  rogue.  He  had  not  guessed,  he  knew. 

"Boys,"  said  the  father  when  they  were  left 
alone,  "I  never  expected  to  be  a  slave  driver  but 
I  have  ben.  I  jest  drove  a  black  slave  out  o' 
my  sight.  His  skin's  white  'nough  but  'is  heart 
's  blacker  'n  a  nigger — any  nigger  that  ever  hoed 
corn.  He's  an  awful  slave  to  himself.  His 
principle  ain't  bigger  'n  a  gnat  but  his  greed  an' 
gall  's  bigger  'n  an  elephant.  I  wouldn't  take 
on  so  about  it  if  he  was  the  only  midget  in  the 
town,  but,  ah,  me!  Times  ain't  what  they  was 
once.  We  hardly  know  who  to  trust.  We  don't 
know  what  minit  to  expect  a  pistol  pinted  at 
our  heads.  It's  nothin'  now  days  to  have  folks 
ask  fur  pocketbook  er  yer  character.  Human 
life  's  wuth  jest  about  's  much  's  a  gold  dollar 
or  an  ol'  shinplaster.  I'm  mighty  glad  I  ain't 
got  to  be  judge  o'  human  affairs  fur  I'm  'fraid  I'd 
be  hasher  'n  the  just  Judge." 

Scarcely    had     he    concluded     his    meditative 


174  A  FAST  GAME 

remarks  when  Naomi  rushed  in  followed  by  the 
reverend  Needman. 

"Oh,  grandfather  and  papa  and  uncle  Henry, 
have  you  seen  the  morning  paper?"  she  exclaimed 
almost  out  of  breath. 

"Why,  of  course,  Puss,"  answered  her  father 
as  she  affectionately  nestled  on  his  knee  and  up 
into  his  right  arm.  "It  looks  like  a  strike  for 
the  first  of  April  and  then  where  will  The  Black 
Diamond  Company  be?" 

"Oh,  I  don't  mean  that  at  all,"  she  answered 
disappointedly.  "Didn't  you  notice  an  account 
of  a  raid  of  the  police  on  the  dens  of  the  city  and 
the  awful  things  that  are  happening  almost  at 
our  own  door?  Then  that  strong  editorial  on 
the  white  Slave  Traffic?  Papa,  it's  awful!" 

"I  must  have  overlooked  the  article,  dear. 
I  wouldn't  worry  myself  about  it  if  I  were  you. 
You  know  that  what  the  reporters  write  for  the 
papers  is  more  than  half  false." 

"You  looked  at  the  status  of  the  money  market, 
the  report  of  the  stock  exchange,  the  results  of 
the  meeting  of  the  Scale  Committee  and  the 
liklihood  of  a  strike  of  the  coal  miners,  didn't 
you?  Do  you  believe  half  you  read  about  them!" 

"You  do  not  understand  the  making  up  of  a 
daily  paper — what  is  reliable  and  what  is  un- 
reliable— nor  do  you  look  at  such  matters  from 
a  business  standpoint." 

"I  know  that,  papa,  nor  do  I  think  you  look 
at  these  matters  from  a  moral  standpoint.  I 
consider  one  of  those  foreign  girls  who  are  now 
in  the  police  station,  worth  more  than  all  the 
minted  money  in  the  United  States,"  earnestly 
contended  Naomi. 


WHITE  AND  BLACK  SLAVES  175 

"Oh,  yes,  I  do,  child.  Perhaps  my  mind  is  not 
so  engrossed  with  the  moral  and  religious  prob- 
lems of  the  day  as  it  is  with  the  secular  ones. 
However,  I  am  in  sympathy  with  them  and  will 
do  all  I  can  for  the  maintenance  of  churches  and 
the  advancement  of  their  work." 

This  lengthy  discourse — lengthy  for  Benjamin 
Slocum,  especially  on  the  subject  under  discus- 
sion— no  doubt,  was  partially  prompted  by  the 
presence  of  his  pastor.  We  must  not  for  a  moment 
think  that  Benjamin  Slocum  was  a  mercenary 
man;  far  from  it.  Yet,  like  most  of  men  in  his 
position,  he  sowed  the  seed,  cultivated  the  crop 
and  reaped  proportionately  more  of  this  world's 
harvest  than  he  expended  on,  and  received  from, 
that  of  the  world  which  is  yet  to  come. 

"I  am  glad  you  think  so,"  smiled  Naomi, 
glancing  roguishly  at  Mr.  Needman  and  slyly 
winking  at  her  grandfather.  "If  you  feel  that 
way  about  the  work  of  the  churches  you  will  be 
delighted  to  furnish  the  means  by  which  Mr. 
Needman  and  I  can  do  the  work.  That  is  just 
what  brought  us  here  this  afternoon,"  she  ex- 
claimed, hugging  her  father's  cheek  tightly  against 
hers  and  springing  lightly  from  him  to  her  grand- 
father. The  indulgent  father  knew  that  she 
loved  him,  not  simply  because  he  granted  nearly 
all  her  requests  but  because  of  himself,  her  own 
father;  for  that  very  reason,  therefore,  he  gave 
her  more  than  he  could  have  done  on  any  other 
condition.  The  grandsire  also  recognized  her 
affectionate  insinuation  and  accosted  her  with  a 
cheerful: 

"Well,  Pleasant,  it  takes  's  much  to  run  you 
's  it  does  to  run  a  bank.  Ye 're  a  prodigal  daughter 


176  A  FAST  GAME 

instid  of  a  prodigal  son."  He  hesitated  a  moment 
while  the  vision  of  Naomi's  brother  passed  before 
him.  Gravity  mingled  in  the  tone  of  his  voice. 
Benjamin's  head  dropped  low  over  his  desk. 
All  seemed  to  feel  the  emotional  stress  of  the 
moment.  The  tender  tension  of  that  instant 
vanished  like  morning  mist,  hugged  to  death  by 
sunshine,  and  every  soul  seemed  as  refreshed 
as  the  lush  pasture  of  Galilee  is  revived  by  the 
dews  of  Hermon,  when  Henry  turned  to  the 
clergyman  and  fraternally  asked:  "How  much 
would  you  like  to  have  for  the  enterprise,  Mr. 
Needman?" 

The  man  of  the  cloth  named  a  modest  sum. 
A  minute  later  a  check  lay  in  his  hand  for  twice 
the  amount  asked  for.  He  looked  with  surprise 
at  his  friend  who  divined  his  gratitude,  and, 
before  an  apology  could  be  given  or  an  expression 
of  thanks  given,  the  giver  warmly  said,  "You 
are  perfectly  welcome  to  it.  I  think  you  will 
be  able  to  use  it  in  your  business.  Hereafter, 
do  not  hesitate  to  let  your  wants  be  known." 

With  a  cordial  farewell  the  grateful  man  bowed 
himself  from  the  room,  followed  by  Naomi.  They 
went  into  the  street  rejoicing  at  how  easily  they 
had  gained  the  essentials  with  which  to  promote 
their  material  project;  the  spiritual  triumph 
would  come  later  by  means  of  prayer  and  pa- 
tience, time  and  tension,  working  and  waiting. 
They  had  devised  a  scheme  to  establish  a  sort 
of  labor  and  entertainment  bureau  for  the  bene- 
fit of  the  working  women  who  were  strangers 
in  the  city  or  who  had  no  certain  home  or  friends 
near  by. 

In  the  shadow  of  the  church  they  would  pur- 


WHITE  AND  BLACK  SLAVES  177 

chase  a  dwelling  house  and,  under  the  super- 
vision of  a  competent  matron,  turn  it  into  a 
Bethel  for  the  homeless  and  outcast  women  and 
girls  of  the  town.  And  is  it  not  a  shame  that 
in  the  large  cities  of  this  "land  of  the  free  and 
the  home  of  the  brave,"  such  an  institution  should 
exist,  or  rather,  that  the  immorality  of  the  slums 
should  make  the  existence  of  it  necessary  for 
the  good  of  the  morals  of  the  community?  Before 
nightfall  they  had  bought  the  required  building, 
secured  the  matron  and  visited  the  police  station 
to  get  their  first  inmates. 

But  the  problem  developed  more  complex- 
ities than  they  had  ever  dreamed  of.  May  it 
not  be  said,  and  said  truthfully,  that  no  human 
mind  and  heart  can  fully  conceive  of  all  the 
intricacies  and  ramifications  of  sin — plain,  every 
day  sin?  Without  the  aid  of  the  allwise  and  the 
almighty  Creator  man  stands  helpless  to  cut  the 
cancerous  roots  of  sin  from  his  own  heart  or 
from  that  of  his  fellow  mortal.  Though  with 
God  "all  things  are  possible,"  God's  creatures 
often,  in  striving  after  the  best  things  for  the 
greatest  number,  are  baffled  in  their  well  meaning 
efforts  and  heap  up  blunders  through  their  near- 
sightedness. 

On  the  other  hand,  let  it  be  understood  that 
fully  as  many  attempts  at  reformation  fail  on 
account  of  the  pride  and  selfish  ingratitude  of 
the  degraded  as  through  obduracy  of  heart. 
Sincerity,  kindness  and  "tears  harden  lust,  though 
marble  wear  with  raining."  When  our  two 
friends  of  humanity  visited  the  police  station 
late  that  afternoon  they  found  these  several 
conditions  of  heart  and  the  degrees  of  licentious- 


178  A  FAST  GAME 

ness  to  which  the  culprits  had  descended. 

In  one  of  the  apartments  they  found  a  beautiful 
young  woman  alone,  a  Swede  by  birth,  who  flung 
herself  on  the  shoulders  of  Naomi  and  burst 
into  a  paroxysm  of  grief.  She  could  not  express 
herself  in  the  English  language  though  she  poured 
out  her  sorrow  in  her  native  tongue.  Neither 
of  her  friends  knew  what  she  meant  by  her  words 
though  by  her  motions  and  emotions  they  per- 
fectly understood  that  she  desired  to  leave  the 
life  she  had  been  leading.  Naomi  kissed  the  tear 
stained  cheeks  and  departed,  promising  through 
various  signs  that  she  would  return  and  release 
her  from  her  imprisonment.  In  the  mean  while 
Mr.  Needman  telephoned  to  a  young  Swede  to 
come  to  the  station  and  act  as  interpreter  for 
them.  The  young  man  could  not  come  until 
the  whistle  blew  for  quitting  time  but  then  he 
would  come. 

In  another  room  three  women  and  a  girl  of 
twelve  awaited  the  action  of  the  police  court. 
These  three  bore  the  unmistakable  marks  of  vice. 
They  glowered  upon  Mr.  Needman  and  Naomi 
in  defiance  of  their  good  intentions  and  without 
a  blush.  Two  of  the  unfortunates  admitted 
that  they  had  voluntarily  entered  the  alley  dive 
several  months  previously,  but  the  third  claimed 
to  have  been  abducted  on  the  promise  of  easy 
employment  and  good  wages.  At  first,  when  she 
had  learned  her  real  position,  the  abducted  girl 
tried  to  escape  but  without  success.  They  kept 
her  under  a  secure  guard  until  she  gave  up  all 
hope  of  ever  living  a  life  of  purity  again;  the 
sense  of  guilt  gradually  wore  away,  and,  at  present, 
she  was  perfectly  reconciled  to  follow  the  course 


WHITE  AND  BLACK  SLAVES  179 

she  had  pursued  for  so  many  months. 

As  she  glibly  chatted  on,  her  language  savoring 
of  the  lowest  vulgarity  and  slang,  the  quick  per- 
ception of  Naomi  detected  the  fatal  ravages  of 
pulmonary  tuberculosis,  and,  from  indirect  ques- 
tions, she  learned  that  the  girl  came  from  a  country 
home  and  respectable  parents.  With  this  sug- 
gestion for  a  starter  Naomi  began  to  picture  the 
old  home  in  imagination  with  all  its  beauties 
and  its  environment  so  conducive  to  rugged  health. 
The  hard  heart  softened.  The  lewd  woman's 
pretentious  indifference  faded  away.  The  white 
slave  expressed  by  her  lusterless  eye  which  had 
caught  a  glimpse  of  the  far  away  cottage  among 
the  hills,  by  her  dilated  nostrils  which  had  evi- 
dently scented  the  fragrance  of  apple  blossoms 
and  lilacs,  and  by  the  tears  which  dimmed  the 
sight,  that  she  would  like  to  be  free  once  more. 

Her  pent  up  feelings  broke  out  into  a  flood  of 
tears.  She  made  a  complete  confession  of  her 
sins  and  heartily  repented  for  their  remission. 
A  week  of  rest  and  care  at  the  Bethel  wrought 
wonders  with  her  physical  appearance  though 
the  consumptive  finger  marks  still  remained. 
With  the  changed  life  came  the  longing  for  home 
and  the  loved  ones  from  whom  she  had  not  heard 
for  months  and  to  whom  she  had  never  divulged 
her  whereabouts.  Another  week  more  and  Naomi 
had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  the  wanderer  return 
to  her  father's  house,  shorn  of  her  health  and 
her  beauty  it  is  true,  but  reclaimed  by  a  father's 
tender  love.  A  letter  three  months  later  recorded 
the  sad  news  that  the  girl  had  gone  to  her  final 
home,  at  peace  with  her  Maker,  and  invoking 
prayers  and  blessings  upon  the  head  of  the  one 


180  A  FAST  GAME 

who  had  befriended  her  in  her  dire  distress. 
"That  one  reclaimation,"  said  Naomi,  while 
joy  and  tears  shone  in  her  eyes,  "is  worth  all 
our  trouble  and  time  together  with  the  cost  of 
the  whole  enterprise." 

But  the  other  two  women  were  what  they 
were  from  choice.  No  persuasion  or  entreaty 
could  swerve  them  from  their  chosen  path  of 
iniquity.  "We  prefer  the  police  station  to  your 
charity  home  an'  its  long  faced  hypocrisy!" 
exclaimed  the  two — duplicates  of  Herodias — when 
the  alternative  was  placed  before  them.  "An" 
we'll  keep  the  kid,  too!"  continued  the  mother 
of  the  girl.  The  little  creature  sidled  toward 
Naomi  apparently  choosing  her  protection  to 
that  of  her  mother. 

The  case  went  before  the  proper  authority. 
The  magistrate  bit  his  lips  and  replied  that  she 
would  never  go  back  to  the  den  of  vice  with  her 
mother  if  he  could  hinder  it;  and  he  did  hinder 
it.  The  mother  begged  for  the  daughter  and 
explained  that  she  was  after  some  clothing  when 
arrested,  and  that  her  board  and  lodging  were 
provided  for  elsewhere.  But  no  interpretation 
of  her  presence  at  the  time  mentioned,  or  any 
material  burst  of  passion,  prevailed  with  the 
officer  of  the  law. 

"You  are  not  a  fit  person  to  care  for  children 
and,  therefore,  I  shall  take  the  child  from  you!" 
warmly  retorted  the  magistrate  after  the  virago 
had  exhausted  all  her  wiles  and  arguments  to 
retain  the  daughter. 

The  case  dropped  there.  The  women  paid 
their  fines  which  were  heavy,  served  their  sen- 
tence in  the  city  bastile  and,  as  far  as  is  known, 


WHITE  AND  BLACK  SLAVES  181 

went  back  to  their  life  of  sin  and  shame.  Naomi 
took  the  child  with  her,  and  after  keeping  her 
for  a  few  weeks,  sent  her  to  a  charitable  and 
reformatory  institution. 

While  these  closing  scenes  were  transpiring  in 
the  court  room  the  young  Swede  was  hastening 
toward  the  police  station.  He  was  not  a  member 
of  Mr.  Needman's  church  but  the  two  had  become 
well  acquainted  in  the  Young  Men's  Christian 
Association  work.  The  three  at  once  repaired 
to  the  lonely  woman.  They  all  stood  behind 
the  keeper  when  he  opened  the  door,  the  inter- 
preter in  the  rear.  No  sooner  had  the  door 
opened  than  the  girl  shrieked  for  joy  while  the 
young  man  rushed  between  his  companions. 
The  two  met  in  the  center  of  the  room  locked  in 
each  other's  arms. 

"Oh,  my  brother!  my  brother!"  cried  the  girl, 
mingling  her  tears  and  her  kisses  on  his  face. 
Instinctively  the  spectators  withdrew  and  left 
the  brother  and  his  lost  but  found  sister  alone. 
In  a  few  minutes,  however,  the  reunited  ones 
invited  the  others  to  participate  in  their  joy  and 
to  learn  the  cause  of  the  unexpected,  though 
nevertheless  happy,  meeting. 

Four  months  before  the  girl  had  sailed  from  her 
native  country  and  in  due  time  landed  in  New 
York  where  she  had  hoped  to  meet  her  brother. 
Sickness  of  the  young  man  prevented  him  from 
fulfilling  his  engagement  so  that  the  poor  girl 
stepped  on  a  foreign  shore  without  a  familiar 
face  to  greet  her.  The  beauty  of  the  forlorn 
woman  immediately  attracted  the  attention  of 
an  agent  of  the  white  slave  traffic.  With  his 
suave  manner,  glib  tongue  and  knowledge  of 


182  A  FAST  GAME 

her  language  he  drew  from  the  girl  her  plight 
and  her  destination.  Of  course  he  knew  her 
brother  and  would  be  glad  to  escort  her  to  him 
for  he  was  going  that  very  way. 

The  way  out  of  her  predicament  seemed  prov- 
idential and  the  helpless  immigrant  fell  into  the 
wilily  set  trap.  Once  in  the  city  of  her  brother 
she  was  given  all  sorts  of  excuses  why  her  brother 
did  not  appear.  Later  on,  her  street  clothing 
disappeared  and  she  found  herself  a  prisoner  at 
the  mercy  of  her  heartless  taskmasters  and  a 
forced  devotee  at  the  shrine  of  licentiousness — 
a  white  slave  in  the  midst  of  a  Christian  city. 

The  brother  had  traced  her  to  the  landing 
but  further  than  that  her  tracks  were  hidden. 
Is  it  any  wonder  that  the  unexpected  meeting, 
even  under  morally  clouded  circumstances,  proved 
so  happy  a  meeting?  But  the  greater  wonder 
is  that,  not  only  in  Onaway  but  also  in  many 
other  cities  of  these  United  States,  this  under- 
ground traffic  in  human  souls  is  carried  on  under 
the  very  eaves  of  the  churches  and  in  defiance  of 
law. 

The  victims  of  the  white  slave  traffic  are  some- 
times to  be  pitied  but  not  always,  depending 
upon  whether  or  not  they  are  involuntary  or 
voluntary  slaves ;  the  black  slave  system  is  always 
voluntary  and  deserves  no  toleration  whatever. 
The  masters,  which  each  serves — whether  a 
voluntary  or  an  involuntary  service — are  self- 
indulgence  and  personal  greed.  The  black  slaves 
are  males,  undeserving  the  name  of  men;  the 
white  slaves  are  women.  The  latter,  oftentimes, 
are  inveigled  into  disorderly  houses  at  a  fixed 
price,  or  by  misrepresentation  or  intimidation. 


WHITE  AND  BLACK  SLAVES  183 

Once  in  the  business — and  it  is  a  business 
though  foul  with  immoral  stench — there  seems 
but  slight  chance  for  the  reformation  of  the 
slave.  "Very  rarely  does  one  have  the  subse- 
quent courage  to  inform  to  the  authorities;  and 
even  in  police  raids,  the  remedy  is  slight,  since 
society  has  not  yet  arranged  adequate  provision 
for  the  reclaimation  of  unfortunates  of  this  char- 
acter, including  a  process  of  distinguishing  be- 
tween real  penitents,  with  a  chance  for  restora- 
tion, and  the  more  hardened  class  that  are  hope- 
lessly wrecked  in  morals  or  in  health  or  in  both. 
At  present,  too,  raiding  throws  the  burden  of 
penalty  chiefly  on  the  unfortunate  women  vic- 
tims and  does  not  reach  the  rascals  that  are 
actually  responsible. 

"More  stringent  legal  penalties  for  abduction 
and  procuring  are  demanded,  as  one  of  the  steps 
necessary  to  righting  this  evil.  But  more  than 
that,  there  is  need  of  expanded  charity  and  of 
charitable  machinery  to  reach  a  hand  of  help 
into  these  lower  stratas  and  lift  up  the  fallen. 
It  is  to  be  feared  that  many  comfortable  people 
living  away  from  the  knowledge  of  these  rougher 
edges  of  the  world  are  ignorant  of  the  need  of 
larger  effort  in  this  humane  'direction,  and,  being 
ignorant,  are  idle  when  knowledge  of  the  truth 
should  or  would  spur  their  dormant  benevolence." 
What  a  game!  A  game  to  make  angels  weep 
and  mortals  pale  with  shame. 


CHAPTER    XII 

SOME    NEW    DEVELOPMENTS 

While  the  humane  and  Christian  work  pro- 
gressed the  first  of  April  drew  near,  the  end  of  the 
period  granted  by  the  award  of  The  Strike  Com- 
mission of  nineteen  hundred  and  three.  The 
scale  committee  had  diligently  labored  toward 
the  adjustment  of  wages;  the  committee  of  the 
operators  had  stood  firm  for  the  old  agreement 
and  had  made  no  concessions  to  the  union;  the 
labor  union  delegates  had  also  met,  demanded 
increases  and  made  some  concessions  from  their 
original  demands;  and  the  joint  committee  had 
met,  parlied  and  adjourned  without  an  agree- 
ment. 

Later  on,  each  committee  of  the  joint  committee 
met,  reconsidered  and  readjusted  the  demands 
and  concessions  of  the  other;  then  the  two  re- 
convened, rearranged  and  readjourned,  and  still 
no  settlement.  In  the  meanwhile,  the  proba- 
bility of  a  strike  grew  more  and  more  evident. 
Men  of  authority  in  the  state  and  the  nation  in 
particular,  and  the  consumers  in  general,  prayed 
and  advised  peace;  the  operators  continued  to 
store  coal  and  to  work  their  mines  on  full  time; 
the  miners  recruited  and  equipped  for  resistance 
to  the  last.  The  all-absorbing  topic  of  the  day 
was  The  Anthracite  Coal  Situation. 
184 


SOME  NEW  DEVELOPMENTS  185 

The  Anthracite  saloon,  however,  ran  a  rousing 
business  at  the  old  stand.  Every  night  the  floor 
resounded  with  the  tread  and  scuffing  of  heavy 
feet,  the  bar  dripped  with  the  foaming  liquors, 
and  the  atmosphere  reeked  with  the  fumes  of 
poison  and  vibrated  with  the  grossest  profanity. 
Ed  Slocum  drank  and  talked  as  of  yore  though 
the  new  development  in  his  case  was  a  more 
general  appearance  of  the  American  bummer. 
His  clothes  were  still  of  excellent  quality,  though 
untidy  in  arrangement;  his  face  was  yet  hand- 
some and  winning,  though  traced  with  dissipa- 
tion; his  gait  blended  the  gentleman's  carriage 
with  a  careless  swagger;  and  his  conversation, 
though  still  grammatically  correct,  bore  a  combi- 
nation of  brilliancy,  obscenity  and  profanity, 
reminding  one  of  a  mountain  spring  tinctured 
with  poison. 

He  spent  his  money  less  freely  at  the  bar  than 
when  we  first  met  him;  the  reason,  perhaps, 
because  of  his  change  of  luck  at  the  gambling 
table  or,  perhaps,  his  father  had  curtailed  his 
monthly  allowance  or,  perhaps,  other  things 
kept  his  purse  well  drained.  These  changes 
cannot,  however,  be  technically  called  new  devel- 
opments; their  classified  position  falls  more  in 
the  line  of  the  course  of  nature — a  result  anyone 
must  expect,  who  follows  the  life  that  Ed  Slocum 
followed. 

But  the  most  prominent  phase  of  his  character 
which  loomed  up  in  the  horizon  of  his  activity 
was  his  withdrawal  to  a  private  room  in  secret 
consultation  with  John  Ransom,  Jr.,  and  Oscar 
Morgan,  the  agitator.  The  reimbursement  of 
his  depleted  treasury  apparently  constituted  the 


186  A  FAST  GAME 

sole  purpose  of  his  life;  how  or  whence,  never 
crossed  his  mental  or  moral  vision. 

"I  have  a  position  with  the  operators'  combi- 
nation, now,"  remarked  John,  Jr.,  when  they 
had  shut  and  locked  the  door  behind  them,  "and 
I  secured  it  on  the  strength  of  the  recommendation 
you  gave  me,  Ed." 

"That  is  good  enough,"  blandly  replied  Ed. 
"You  may  be  able  to  work  them  for  the  several 
thousand  dollars  my  old  granddad  failed  to  let 
slip  through  his  fingers  for  us.  Better  keep  out 
of  the  way  of  Harry  Norwood  for  a  while,  though, 
for  he  has  taken  a  fresh  start  in  the  Christian  life. 
He  is  morally  too  honest  now  to  approach  on  this 
subject.  There  are  others,  though."  Turning 
to  his  other  confederate  Ed  continued,  "And  how 
have  you  succeeded.  Morgan?" 

"First  rate!"  replied  the  miner  and  labor  agi- 
tator. "I  can  wark  the  black  hand  racket  to 
perfection.  Curley'll  do  anything  I  ask  'im  an' 
he's  got  jest  as  big  a  devil  with  'im  now  as  he  do 
be  himself.  Where  threats  an'  persuasion  fail 
other  things  will  be  doin',  hereafter."  Taking  a 
roll  of  bills  he  deposited  it  on  the  table,  saying 
with  a  smile,  "There's  a  cool  hundred  I  extracted 
last  night  an'  there  do  be  more  in  sight." 

"You're  the  duck!"  cheerfully  spoke  up  Ed, 
taking  half  of  the  pile  for  his  share  and  dividing 
the  other  half  equally  between  the  other  two. 
"We  are  all  O.  K.  if  we  can  keep  the  cards  out 
sight  of  the  Slocum  family  and  from  that  devil  of 
a  Tom  Boland.  But  the  talk  is  that  the  fellow 
has  gone  away  and  has  not  been  seen  for  a  long 
time,  ever  since  his  old  dad  died.  While  he  is 
away  we  may  do  a  whole  lot  if  we  get  busy.  I 


SOME  NEW  DEVELOPMENTS  187 

think,  though,  if  the  truth  was  known,  that  Tom 
is  on  one  of  his  old  time  periodicals  and  when  he 
shows  up,  if  he  ever  does,  he  will  be  one  of  us  again, 
at  least,  he  will  be  harmless  if  we  keep  him  under 
the  grog." 

"That  is  my  exact  opinion,"  put  in  John,  Jr. 
"The  last  I  saw  of  him  he  appeared  to  be  under 
the  influence  of  intoxicants.  It  was  the  evening 
after  his  father's  funeral.  He  looked  haggard 
and  emaciated  and  I  am  confident  I  detected  the 
odor  of  spirits  about  him.  Then,  too,  I  am  quite 
sure  that  he  and  the  Slocum  brothers  are  on  the 
outs.  He  hung  behind  the  day  of  the  hearing 
concerning  the  Slocum  mine  disaster  and  talked 
with  them  privately.  When  he  came  out  he 
looked  like  a  whipped  cur.  He  has  returned  to  his 
cups  and  no  mistake." 

"I  think,  myself,"  said  Oscar,  "that  Tom's 
reformation  is  ended.  Ye  recollect  two  years 
ago  when  he  an'  Dick  got  on  a  spree  fur  a  hull 
month,  an'  the  month  before  he  had  been  sober — 
something  unheard  of  before.  He's  ben  sober 
now  fur  more  nor  a  year  an'  I  do  be  dead  certain 
there  ain't  no  risk  in  his  case.  •  Another  reason 
fur  me  opinion  is,  that  me  brother,  Evan,  the 
doctor,  an'  yer  sister  do  be  on  better  terms  than 
before.  It  looks  like  Naomi  has  given  up  the 
reformation  business  of  the  wily  Irishman." 

"Oh,  we  are  safe  enough  as  far  as  that  is  con- 
cerned," said  Ed,  "but  right  now  we'll  put  in  our 
best  licks,  all  the  same,  while  the  miners  and 
the  operators  are  sparring  for  the  best  position. 
The  next  month  will  tell  the  story.  That's  all 
tonight.  Oh,  no,  John!  I  understand  that  your 
family  pew  has  been  vacant  lately,  since  your 


188  A  FAST  GAME 

break  with  the  Slocums.  Supposing  you  persuade 
the  other  members  of  the  family  to  return  to 
their  former  church  affiliations  as  if  nothing  had 
happened.  You  have  as  good  a  position  now 
as  you  had  before  and  your  father  is  yet  with 
the  old  firm.  Try  it  in  a  Sunday  or  two.  Work 
a  grand  bluff  on  the  church  public.  That's  all 
anyway.  Au  revoir!" 

The  triumvirate  closed  its  secret  cabinet  ses- 
sion and  adjourned  to  the  barroom. 

The  church  bluff  came  off  on  the  following 
Sabbath,  and  it  came  off  on  this  wise.  John,  Jr., 
had  some  difficulty  to  persuade  the  other  mem- 
bers of  the  offended  family  to  attend  divine 
services  in  their  home  church,  but  he  finally 
succeeded.  He  played  his  part  well,  but  their 
morning  session  at  the  church  proved  of  brief 
duration  and  void  of  spiritual  pabulum,  ending 
very  abruptly  and  conspicuously  as  well  as  adding 
humor  and  sensation  to  the  occasion.  The  entire 
family  of  Ransoms  to  the  number  of  six,  ex- 
cepting James,  the  attorney,  who  had  married 
Anna  Morgan  and  who  rented  an  individual 
pew,  entered  the  church  and  were  ushered  to 
their  pew,  well  to  the  front,  while  Mr.  Needman 
was  reading  the  first  hymn.  The  hymn  chanced 
to  be  that  old  familiar  one  beginning,  "Blow  ye 
the  trumpet,  blow,  etc."  Just  as  the  sextet 
filed  into  the  pew  the  pastor  read  the  closing 
lines — in  fact,  these  lines  are  the  same  in  every 
stanza — 

"The  year  of  jubilee  is  come! 
Return  ye  ransomed  sinners,  home." 

The  words  did  not  strike  the  ears  of  the  Ran- 
som family  as  familiar,  but  more  applicable  than 


SOME  NEW  DEVELOPMENTS  189 

appropriate,  and  still  more  embarassing  than 
edifying.  They  took  offence  immediately.  One 
by  one  the  ransomed  sinners  retraced  their  steps 
from  the  auditorium  as  they  had  entered,  with 
measured  tread  and  dignified  bearing,  except 
that  the  file  order  was  reversed,  the  usher  follow- 
ing the  procession  to  the  door.  Thus  ended 
the  second  ecclesiastical  chapter  of  the  Ransom 
family  to  the  disappointment,  as  well  as  to  no 
little  inner  merriment,  of  Ed  Slocum  who  chanced 
to  be  in  his  family  pew  on  that  sacred  Sabbath 
morning. 

Another  new  development  projected  itself  into 
the  world  of  gossip  in  the  form  of  the  increasing 
intimacy  between  Dr.  Morgan  and  Naomi  Slocum. 
As  mentioned  in  the  above  lines,  Oscar  Morgan 
had  merely  repeated  the  current  gossip  when 
he  said  that  Tom  was  out  and  Evan  was  in. 
The  many  cases  of  coughs  and  colds  and  grip, 
as  well  as  the  more  serious  cases  of  pneumonia, 
kept  the  doctor  more  than  busy,  yet,  through 
his  long  working  hours  and  the  nervous  tension 
and  anxiety  for  his  patients,  he  found  ample 
time  to  visit  Naomi. 

Whether  by  chance  or  charm,  they  often  met 
in  the  homes  of  the  suffering  poor  where  each 
ministered  to  the  physical,  and  often  to  the 
spiritual,  needs  of  the  inmates.  The  mutual 
satisfaction  of  following  their  chosen  work  and 
the  conscientious  thoroughness  with  which  each 
performed  the  duties  in  that  line,  naturally  threw 
them  together  and  as  naturally  busied  the  idle 
tongues  respecting  the  probability  of  a  matri- 
monial alliance  in  the  elite  society  of  the  city. 
Nor  was  the  gossip  entirely  groundless.  The 


190  A  FAST  GAME 

case  that  worried  the  doctor  the  most  was  Naomi's 
case.  His  solicitude  on  the  part  of  the  other 
cases  lay  in  the  probability  of  his  effecting  a 
complete  annihilation  of  the  malady;  but  in  her 
case,  all  depended  on  his  ability  to  court  the 
disease  until  it  became  so  deeply  seated  as  to 
require  his  entire  lifetime  to  alleviate  its  insinu- 
ations. 

So  seriously  did  he  consider  the  case  of  his 
patient  that  a  formal  consultation,  not  of  physi- 
cians but  of  lovers,  seemed  the  only  expedient 
method  of  procedure.  With  this  object  in  view 
and  during  a  forced  temporary  cessation  of  his 
professional  duties,  he  wended  his  way  to  the 
mansion  of  Benjamin  Slocum.  He  determined, 
under  the  stress  of  his  amateurish  duty,  to  know 
his  fate  at  the  hands  of  the  only  daughter. 

Naomi  received  him  most  cordially.  Accus- 
tomed to  diagnose  his  cases  as  soon  as  possible 
he  proceeded,  in  this  instance,  according  to  habit. 
Their  relations  had  been  of  the  most  friendly 
for  years  but  at  this  particular  decisive  moment 
the  doctor  evidenced  signs  of  agitation  and  doubt 
as  to  the  proper  course  to  pursue.  On  the  one 
hand,  he  studied  the  delicate  approaches  by 
which  he  could  lead  up  to  the  subject  in  hand, 
and,  on  the  other,  he  wondered  what  would  be 
the  ultimate  consequences  of  this,  his  most  subtle 
and  complicated  case,  at  the  same  time,  the 
most  interesting  and  infatuating  one. 

When  Naomi  attempted  to  withdraw  her  hand 
after  their  formal  and  mutually  warm  greeting, 
he  held  it  the  tighter  and  drew  her  to  the  piano 
against  which  he  awkwardly  leaned  and  as  awk- 
wardly began  the  seige  of  the  coveted  citadel 


SOME  NEW  DEVELOPMENTS  191 

he  hoped  to  conquer,  by  saying,  "My  dear,  Naomi!" 
He  had  never  called  her  by  her  given  name  before. 
That  fact,  together  with  the  serious  tone  of  his 
voice,  brought  a  blush  to  Naomi's  cheek  and 
warned  her  that  a  crisis  had  come.  "I  came 
here  today  to  tell  you  of  my  love — to — to  offer 
myself  to  you  and — and  to  get  your  consent  to — 
to  be  my  wife." 

An  awkward  pause  followed,  partly  because 
the  doctor  thought  he  had  asked  a  question  that 
could  be  answered  by  yes  or  no,  and  partly  be- 
cause Naomi  did  not  know  just  how  to  answer  an 
unasked  question,  especially  when  the  indirect 
question  bore  so  weighty  a  sentiment  and  was 
spoken  under  so  strenuous  circumstances.  In 
the  mean  while,  the  man  of  medicine  gently  drew 
the  girl  toward  him  and  she  as  gently  drew  herself 
away  from  him. 

"Will  you  consent  to  be  my  own,  Naomi?" 
he  abruptly  asked  with  a  voice  choked  and  husky. 
Naomi  stood  with  her  head  slightly  fallen  to  one 
side  and  her  eyes  fixed  on  the  floor.  Her  left 
hand  dallied  with  her  watch  cord,  her  right  hand 
lay  in  his.  Another  silence  followed  the  direct 
interrogation.  Morgan  waited,  looking  down  at 
the  woman  at  his  side.  She  slowly  raised  her 
eyes  to  his.  Moisture  glistened  on  the  lifted 
eyelashes.  The  doctor  then  knew  that  she 
understood  his  meaning  and  that  for  him  to 
bide  her  time  to  answer  was  the  better  part  of 
valor.  Each  delved  for  the  other's  inner  thought 
and  self,  and  each  consciously  perceived  the 
sincerity,  the  purity,  the  worth  and  the  love 
of  the  other. 

Why,  then,  should  there  be  any  hesitation  on 


192  A  FAST  GAME 

the  part  of  either?  The  occult  mysteries  of 
intuition  could  not  be  explained,  but  by  its 
reasoning  Evan  Morgan  discerned  that  Naomi 
said  "Yes"  in  her  heart,  though,  to  his  surprise 
and  sore  disappointment,  she  made  answer, 
"I  appreciate  your  love,  Doctor  Morgan,  and 
cannot  say  that  it  is  not  reciprocated,  but  you 
will  pardon  me  if  I  ask  for  two  months  in  which 
to  make  my  final  answer.  You  know  me  well 
enough  to  understand  that  I  am  not  requesting 
time  for  any  trifling  purpose,  and  that  I  do  not 
want  to  cause  you  any  unnecessary  apprehen- 
sion. Our  lives  and  our  work  shall  move  on  in 
the  same  routine  as  they  have  heretofore,  but 
before  the  two  months  are  passed  you  shall  know 
my  final  decision.  Is  it  agreed?" 

Without  any  hesitation,  whatever,  Morgan 
consented  to  her  proposal,  well  knowing  that 
she  had  substantial  reasons  of  her  own  and  that 
persuasion  or  argument  would  not  and  could  not 
swerve  her  from  her  proposed  course  of  action. 
They  separated  under  slightly  more  sensitive 
circumstances  than  they  met  though  each  held 
the  other  in  higher  esteem  than  before  and  each 
felt  that  a  better  and  a  more  definite  understand- 
ing lay  between  them.  Naomi  went  to  her  duties 
more  thoughtful  and  quiet  than  formally,  if  such 
could  be  possible,  while  Morgan  went  to  his  office 
with  no  less  love  for  the  woman  of  his  choice, 
at  the  same  time  jealously  confident  that  his 
chances  of  spousal  success  lay  in  the  power  of 
Tom  Boland.  He  loved  Tom  more  than  he 
loved  any  other  man. 

What  if  Tom  had  asked  the  hand  of  Naomi 
in  marriage  and,  having  been  refused,  he  had 


SOME  NEW  DEVELOPMENTS  193 

declared  he  would  go  back  into  his  old  ways 
of  dissipation?  Which  loss  could  he  the  better 
endure,  the  loss  of  the  man  or  the  loss  of  the 
woman?  In  either  case  the  doctor  would  be 
brought  face  to  face  with  intense  pain  and  sorrow. 
Let  it  be  said  in  all  fairness,  however,  that  the 
thought  of  Tom's  fall  flashed  through  Evan's 
mind  though  he  did  not  cherish  the  thought 
in  the  least,  but,  in  the  depths  of  his  soul,  he 
sincerely  hoped  that,  to  overcome  his  rival, 
that  rival  must  not  return  to  the  haunts  of  vice. 
In  this  state  of  mind  the  physician  entered  his 
office  and,  for  the  time  being,  became  lost  in 
administering  to  the  ills  and  pains  of  his  fellow 
man. 

Two  phases  of  the  black  and  red  handed  work 
appeared  as  new  developments  in  the  public 
eye.  Let  it  be  said  that  not  all  the  miners,  not 
even  a  majority  of  them,  were  in  the  blackhanded 
gang.  Neither  can  it  be  said  that  the  labor 
union,  or  its  leaders,  countenanced  the  acts  of, 
or  held  complicity  with,  that  secret  organiza- 
tion. The  same  is  true  in  reference  to  the  rela- 
tion between  the  operators  and  the  red  handed 
aggregation.  And  yet,  to  the  consumer  in  gen- 
eral, to  the  labor  unions  and  to  the  operators, 
the  diplomatic  sparring  and  the  commission  meet- 
ings between  capital  and  labor,  only  added  fuel 
to  the  flame  already  kindled — a  flame  that  each 
side's  selfishness  would  ultimately  fan  into  a 
strike  conflagration  which  would  separate  the 
contending  elements  the  farther.  But  to  a 
keen  observer  of  the  signs  of  the  times,  as  well 
as  to  some  members  of  the  gangs,  there  was 
only  one  gang  and  over  that  body  the  devil  in- 


194  A  FAST  GAME 

carnate  held  the  reins  of  leadership  and  drove 
both  parties  to  suit  his  devilish  wiles,  knowing 
that  as  long  as  he  kept  the  two  classes  at  war 
with  each  other,  just  so  long  would  he  reap  his 
devilish  harvest  and  gloat  over  the  blood  of  his 
victims. 

There  was  but  one  hand  and  that  a  devilish 
hand,  changing  its  color  like  a  chameleon  from 
black  to  red  and  from  red  to  black,  to  suit  his 
convenience  and  to  execute  his  nefarious  devices. 

The  new  developments  along  these  lines,  summed 
up  in  a  few  words,  are  that  the  contestants  were 
fighting  men  of  straw  and  imaginary  enemies, 
while  the  consumers  stood  aghast  and  beheld 
their  own  interests  crippled  and  the  slowly  wast- 
ing ranks  of  the  contestants  who  fought  against 
their  own  prosperity  as  well  as  against  that  of  the 
opposing  forces.  The  consumers  also  saw  the 
members  of  the  gang  in  general  and  the  leaders 
of  the  gang  in  particular,  sit  behind  the  screens 
and  manipulate  the  wires  that  kept  graft  flowing 
into  their  own  coffers,  while  they  laughed  at 
the  inconsistency  and  asininity  of  the  battling 
hosts. 

Perhaps  it  is  a  misnomer  to  call  this  double- 
handed  device  of  human  selfishness-at-any-cost 
a  new  development,  though  we  leave  it  here  in 
that  class.  It  is  simply  "that  old  serpent,  called 
the  devil,  and  Satan,  which  deceiveth  the  whole 
world,"  the  same  old  deceiver  that  insinuated 
himself  into  the  garden  of  Eden,  left  his  poisonous 
venom  in  the  tents  of  Israel,  has  often  trailed 
his  slimy  scales  through  palace  halls  and  peasant 
cottage,  wound  his  deadly  coils  around  purity 
and  personal  liberty,  and,  by  his  charms,  fasci- 


SOME  NEW  DEVELOPMENTS  195 

nated  pulpit  utterances  and  pageant  pleasure — 
the  same  old  serpent,  only  in  a  newer  dress, 
playing  the  role  of  a  modern  dramatist  with  an 
ancient  drama  on  an  up-to-date  stage  with  an 
out-of-date  character.  My  God!  what  a  hellish 
game  he  plays! 


CHAPTER    XIII 

A    COLD    WAVE 

Zero  weather  prevailed.  Through  the  Wyom- 
ing valley,  up  the  Susquehanna  river,  from  town 
to  town,  a  solitary  individual,  footsore  and  sick, 
wended  his  weary  way  on  up  the  Lackawanna 
valley  toward  Onaway.  Andra  Nolinski  had 
been  in  the  United  States  but  a  little  more  than 
a  year.  Like  many  another  foreigner  he  little 
knew  of  the  vastness  of  our  great  nation,  her 
wonderful  cosmopolitan  population  and  her  man- 
ners and  customs  which  are  so  different  from 
those  of  countries  beyond  the  seas. 

Andra  had  labored  in  a  mine  at  Nanticoke 
during  most  of  his  stay  in  this  land,  getting  ac- 
quainted with  a  few  of  even  his  own  people  and, 
naturally  of  a  reserved  nature,  mingling  none 
at  all  with  those  who  were  not  of  his  own  nation. 
About  holidays  he  had  been  injured  in  the  mines, 
the  injury  later  on  developing  into  protracted 
illness.  What  compensation  he  had  received 
for  his  work  soon  disappeared  into  the  hands 
of  his  doctor  and  his  boarding  mistress. 

Money  gone  and,  as  a  natural  consequence, 
scanty  clothing,  a  member  of  no  organization, 
having  made  no  friends  and  no  one  having  made 
friends  with  him,  poor  Andra  tramped  his  un- 
known journey  over  the  hubby  ground,  friendless, 

196 


A  COLD  WAVE  197 

homeless,  cold  and  hungry,  scarcely  knowing 
whither  he  went  and  to  what  purpose,  only  that 
he  had  a  brother  in  Onaway,  far  or  near,  big 
or  little,  as  that  place  might  be.  Heartless  Jack 
Frost  spared  neither  his  feet  nor  fingers;  in  fact, 
he  chilled  the  wanderer  from  head  to  foot.  No- 
linski  knew  that  in  the  old  country  the  village 
tavern  was  a  sort  of  bureau  of  information  for 
everybody.  With  this  idea  in  mind  he  staggered, 
chilled  and  exhausted,  into  The  Anthracite. 

"What  have  we  got  here?"  remarked  Ed  Slo- 
cum,  when  the  new  comer  awkwardly  crossed 
the  floor  toward  the  bar. 

"Perhaps  he  do  be  an  import  or  one  o'  their 
advance  agents,"  answered  Dick  Morgan,  "here 
to  be  on  hand  when  we  declare  the  strike  the  first 
of  April." 

"More  apt  to  be  a  walking  delegate  for  the 
Pinch  and  Poverty  Union,"  complacently  an- 
swered Ed,  tipping  back  his  chair  into  a  cloud 
of  smoke  that  he  had  made  from  his  own  burning. 

"Git  out  o'  here!"  growled  the  bartender  to 
the  stranger  whom  he  took  to  be  intoxicated 
rather  than  sick  and  shivering.  "Can't  'ave 
nothin'  'ere!" 

Andra  understood  the  meaning  of  the  bar- 
tender's gestures  but  not  his  words.  He  made 
no  pretence  toward  going.  On  the  contrary, 
he  leaned  against  the  bar  and  attempted  to  speak 
while  the  cigars  in  the  room  rested  either  be- 
tween teeth  or  fingers  without  draft.  The  lights 
burned  brilliantly  compared  with  the  shadowy 
streets  from  which  their  strange  guest  had  come. 
Andra  was  dazed  and  chilled.  His  first  attempted 
utterances  became  audible  in  a  pitiful  wail  and 


198  A  FAST  GAME 

chattering  teeth.  His  body  quivered  with  cold 
and  weakness. 

"Hout  wid  ye!"  commanded  the  dispenser  of 
evil. 

The  figure  at  the  bar  did  not  move  but  made 
another  attempt  to  make  his  wants  known. 
This  time  he  had  better  success. 

"Hey,  meester!"  he  said,  "you  know  ma  brud- 
er,  Mike  Nolinski?  Me  want  find  heem." 

"He's  not  drunk,  Jim!"  exclaimed  Ed,  jumping 
to  his  feet  and  flinging  a  dime  on  the  bar.  "Give 
the  poor  frozen  devil  a  hot  whiskey.  That  will 
loosen  his  tongue." 

While  the  bartender  obeyed  Andra  turned  to 
Ed  saying,  "Me  want  find  ma  bruder,  Mike  No- 
linski." 

"I  don't  know  anything  about  your  brother, 
old  man.  Where  have  you  come  from  ?' '  demanded 
Ed. 

"  'E's  a  'obo,  hall  right!"  exclaimed  a  bystander. 
"You're  hin  fur  the  drinks,  Hed!" 

"He's  no  union  man!  Don't  waste  yer  money 
on  'im,"  said  Dick. 

"Union  or  no  union,  hobo  or  no  hobo,"  cried 
Ed,  "the  poor  cuss  is  nearly  frozen  and  I  am 
paying  for  the  drink."  Then  turning  to  the 
unfortunate  man  and  taking  the  hot  sling  which 
had  been  brought  in,  went  on,  "Here,  my  friend, 
down  this  and  then  tell  us  what  you  want." 

"Me  no  money,  meester,"  the  shivering  man 
protested,  pushing  the  glass  from  him.  "Me  no 
can  pay.  Me  want  ma  bruder!" 

But  they  insisted  that  he  drink  which  he  did, 
though  slowly  and  after  much  urging  and  many 
explanations  that  the  toddy  would  not  cost  him 


A  COLD  WAVE  199 

anything.  A  newspaper  man  chanced  to  enter 
at  this  stage  of  the  game  and  ordered  a  dish  of 
hot  soup  to  be  set  before  the  famished  stranger. 
It  was  done  and  after  the  same  urging  as  before, 
he  ate  with  a  relish.  The  second  bowl  followed 
the  first  and  while  he  ate  the  last  in  a  side  room, 
the  bystanders  withdrew  and  left  him  alone. 

The  Anthracite  made  no  pretentions  to  being 
a  religious  institution,  much  less  a  charitable 
soup  house,  therefore,  the  game  played  in  its 
precincts  at  this  time,  savored  of  the  novel  and 
sensational.  The  sorry  plight  of  the  stranger 
had  to  be  discussed  in  detail.  While  the  dis- 
cussion went  on  in  the  barroom  the  subject  of 
their  charity  disappeared.  Where  could  he  be? 

"Hit's  up  to  you  ag'in,  Hed,"  called  out  one 
of  the  party.  "You've  cast  yer  pearls  afore 
swine,  this  time,  sure!" 

"It's  not  the  first  time,"  answered  Ed,  making 
for  the  door  in  order  to  catch  his  supposed  fleeing 
victim.  But  when  he  turned  behind  the  screen 
which  stood  before  the  door,  he  fetched  up  as 
suddenly  as  if  he  had  come  upon  a  corpse.  He 
took  off  his  hat  reverently  and  threw  up  his 
left  hand — a  signal  for  silence. 

The  barroom  hushed  to  the  stillness  of  a  tomb. 
The  voice  of  prayer  sweetly  echoed  through  the 
stifling  atmosphere.  There  upon  his  knees  with 
his  hands  clasped  across  his  breast  and  partially 
hidden  by  the  lattice  screen,  Andra  Nolinski 
poured  out  his  heart  to  a  present  Friend — a  God 
who  could  understand  his  language.  His  many 
tears  bore  evidence  of  his  sincerity  and  spoke  a 
language  that  the  bystanders  could  understand 
without  an  interpreter.  The  praying  Polander, 


200  A  FAST  GAME 

the  unknown  tongue  and  the  environment,  made 
a  spectacle  of  contrast  and  impressiveness  seldom 
if  ever  witnessed  anywhere  before.  The  com- 
pany bowed  in  humble  reverence  through  the 
remainder  of  the  prayer. 

When  the  voice  ceased  and  the  petitioner  rose 
from  his  knees,  the  outside  door  opened,  letting 
in  a  gust  of  frosty  air  and  a  well  dressed  miner 
who  stood  for  an  instant,  face  to  face,  with  Andra. 
The  cards  changed  rapidly  in  the  game.  The 
lookers  on  had  their  tenderest  feelings  for  a 
praying  and  friendless  stranger  whisked  to  the 
union  of  two  brothers  who  fell  into  each  others 
arms  and  wept  like  children.  They  jabbered 
for  a  minute  in  their  native  tongue.  The  well 
groomed  brother  then  offered  Ed  a  dime  which 
he  promptly  refused;  likewise  a  quarter  to  the 
reporter,  which  he  also  refused.  Both  brothers 
bowing  a  low  courtesy  of  gratitude  to  the  two 
benefactors  and  then  to  all  the  others  in  the 
room,  they  left  the  place,  hand  in  hand. 

The  cold  wave,  that  swept  across  the  barroom 
when  the  brothers  went  out,  increased  in  intensity 
a  moment  later  when  John  Ransom,  Jr.,  entered 
and  announced  that  the  operators  had  rejected 
every  demand  made  on  them  by  the  Mine  Worker's 
Union.  The  entrance  of  the  outside  foreman 
scattered  and  dispelled  the  religious  aroma  of 
the  place  like  a  summer  breeze  blows  off  the 
pollen  from  a  corn  tassel;  yet,  like  the  pollen 
on  the  corn  silk,  the  sacred  influences  of  the 
moment  had  their  fecundating  touch  on  the 
socialistic  arguments  and  discussions  that  fol- 
lowed. No  sweetness  can  be  wasted  on  the 


A  COLD  WAVE  201 

desert  air  though  its  divine  purpose  may  be 
perverted. 

"It'll  be  a  colder  day  nor  today,"  began  Oscar 
Morgan,  the  agitator,  "before  the  operators  '11 
have  a  better  opportunity  to  concede  to  the 
proposals  of  the  Union.  I,  fur  one,  do  be  in 
the  game  to  beat." 

"Considering  the  feasibility  of  the  circum- 
stances concerned,"  interrupted  John,  Jr.,  "the 
Union  has  apparently,  and  wisely  I  may  add, 
made  extreme  demands — " 

"Nonsense  with  yer  extremes!     I — " 

"Just  be  patient  till  I  am  through,  Mr.  Morgan! 
As  I  was  about  to  remark  when  interrupted,  the 
excessive  demands  of  the  Union,  no  doubt,  were 
first  spread  before  the  operators  in  order  that, 
if  rejected  by  that  body,  there  would  yet  remain 
ample  occasion  for  large  concessions  and  still 
receive  the  required  advance  for  which  the  Union 
is  contending.  I  consider  the  movement  as  a 
diplomatic  stroke  of  primary  importance.  In 
the  first  place  it  intensifies  the  cupidity  of  the 
operators  that  they  are  winning  their  point, 
and  in  the  second  place,  when  the  Union  makes 
the  concessions,  the  sympathy  of  the  public  is 
enlisted  on  the  side  of — " 

"To  the  devil  with  the  sympathy  of  the  pub- 
lic! We've  got  that  an'  will  have  it,  so  long 
as  the  world  stands,"  hotly  broke  in  Oscar,  who 
chafed  to  have  free  speech. 

"I  demand  silence,"  retorted  the  speaker  who 
had  the  floor. 

"Let  the  Englishman  have  his  say,"  good- 
naturedly  put  in  Ed.  "He  is  like  the  cold  wave 
we  are  having  outside  now;  it  must  have  its 


202  A  FAST  GAME 

blow  out  before  it  can  have  a  let  up.  Go  on, 
Mr.  Ransom;  the  floor  is  yours." 

The  evident  good  humor  of  the  company  and 
the  suave  manner  of  its  monitor,  took  the  wind 
out  of  the  oratorical  sails  of  the  loquacious  har- 
anguer.  His  concluding  effort  began  with  a 
light  puff,  after  which  he  lay  becalmed  and  help- 
less. 

"On  the  side — on  the  side  of  the  Union,  and — 
and  the — the  religious  element  will — will  also — " 

"Great  Scott!"  yelled  Oscar,  jumping  into 
the  middle  of  the  room  mid  cheers  and  laughter, 
"Ye  garrulous  numbskull,  ye,  with  constipated 
idees,  ye  do  be  nineteen  hundred  years  behind 
the  times.  The  idee  of  the  laborin'  men  enlistin' 
the  sympathy  o'  the  public!  I  tell  'e,  an'  I  say 
it  with  me  head  up,  the  laborin'  class  is  the  pub- 
lic. I  want  ye  know,  Mr.  Longwords,  that  we 
do  be  it.  What  d'ye  know  about  the  Union? 
Yes,  and  what  d'ye  care  about  it?  Ye  ain't 
neither  in  it  nor  out  of  it,  an'  unless  ye  sing  a 
different  song,  ye'll  never  be  in  it.  Ye  ken  set 
on  the  fence  an'  see  us  go  by ;  an'  we  do  be  goin' 
by  fur  fair,  too.  An'  if  ye  don't  git  on  to  the 
bandwagon  pretty  soon  ye'll  git  left  by  the  per- 
cession;  an'  when  ye've  come  to  yer  senses  an' 
find  yerself  alone,  ye'll  begin  to  chirp  like  a  swal- 
low on  the  first  day  o'  September.  About  that 
time  ye'll  want  a  bit  to  stay  yer  stomach  an' 
ye'll  git  off  yer  high  perch,  trot  round  to  the 
blessed  operators — peace  to  their  ashes — an'  ask 
'em  fur  bread  an'  they'll  give  ye  a  stone,  an'  right 
'n  the  neck,  too,  jest  as  we've  got  it,  many  an' 
many  a  time.  Now!  I  want  it  understood, 
we've  had  stone  fur  steady  diet  long  enough." 


A  COLD  WAVE  203 

The  speaker  or  his  inner  stimulant,  or  both, 
were  warming  up  to  the  subject  in  hand.  The 
auditors  knew  very  well  that  his  bantering  toward 
Ransom  was  done  goodnaturedly  and  that, 
though  Ransom  might  feel  somewhat  chagrined 
for  the  moment,  he  would  soon  recover  from  the 
shock  and  be  at  peace  with  his  comrades.  More- 
over, the  listeners  enjoyed  the  glib  tongue  of 
the  agitator,  and  urged  him  on — Ed,  by  treating 
the  crowd,  the  speaker  included;  and  the  crowd 
by  drinking  his  toast. 

"That's  the  proper  caper,  Mr.  Slocum,"  ex- 
claimed the  excited  agitator,  "me  throat  was 
gittin'  dryer  nor  a  coal  chute  in  July  an'  I  was 
about  to  expectorate  a  bale  o'  cotton  when  ye 
set  'em  up.  Here  goes  to  Ed  Slocum  an'  the 
Union  an'  the  last  o'  the  aridity  o'  Sahara!"  and 
he  drained  his  glass  at  one  gulp. 

"Whew!  that  hums  like  a  sheave  wheel!"  he 
exclaimed  when  he  had  recovered  his  breath 
and  rinsed  his  throat  with  water.  "That  alienates 
all  enemies  an'  all  disturbin'  influences,  an'  con- 
geals the  brotherhood  o'  the  buddies  about  the 
bar.  It  may  be  that  the  likes  o'  this  put  old 
Noah  to  shame,  nevertheless,  it's  the  likes  o' 
this  that  whiles  many  a  happy  hour  away;  lubri- 
cates the  artistic  taste  o'  good  fellowship;  strikes 
the  human  lyre  with  many  a  soft  refrain;  distills 
the  evenin's  murmurin's  like  sunlit  mornin'  dew; 
and  glides  a  fellow  over  the  rough  paths  o'  this 
unfriendly  world  with  gentle  jolt  an'  jollity.  The 
chariot  wheels  of  Bacchus  roll  as  smoothly  through 
a  fellow's  sensorium  as  the  wheels  o'  Neptune 
through  the  sea. 

"Hem-m!     There  do  be  no  question  but  that 


204  A  FAST  GAME 

the  social  problem  do  be  the  leadin'  topic  o'  the 
day.  Talk  about  the  public's  sympathy!  The 
vast  majority  o'  the  population  o'  the  globe 
ain't  nobody  but  wage  earners.  Wark  do  be 
the  secret  o'  happiness  an'  them  what  will  not 
wark  hadn't  ought  to  be  allowed  to  eat.  The 
first  Scripture  injunction  was  that  man  should 
eat  his  bread  in  the  sweat  o'  his  face.  I  consider 
it  an  honor  to  be  a  laborin'  man.  Talk  about 
the  sympathy  o'  the  church!  Why,  the  church 
has  always  ben  on  the  side  o'  the  warkin'  man 
an'  always  will  be.  What  few  rich  duffers  there 
do  be  in  the  church  do  be  there  fur  nothin'  more 
nor  less  than  fur  patronage  from  their  employes. 
It's  the  same  old  song  o'  the  Pharisee  an'  the 
sinner,  the  rich  man  an'  Lazarus.  You  ask  me, 
'What  would  Jesus  do  if  he  was  here  in  these 
times?'  I  ken  answer  without  a  blush  that  he'd 
be  one  of  us.  He  drove  out  the  money  changers 
an'  he  condemned  the  rich  men  an'  he  lashed  the 
scribes  an'  the  Pharisees.  The  very  fact  that 
he  put  it  to  the  capitalists  was  why  they  put 
him  to  death.  If  he  had  catered  to  'em  they'd 
'ave  clothed  'im  in  purple  an'  fine  linen  an'  dined 
'im  sumptuously  every  day.  But,  no;  because 
he  was  a  poor  warkin'  man,  a  carpenter  by  trade, 
an"  would  not  submit  to  their  rule,  they  put  'im 
out  o'  the  way.  They'll  put  us  out  o'  the  way, 
too,  unless  we  stan'  fur  our  rights.  If  that 
Galilean  was  here  now  he'd  be  an  agitator  jest 
as  I  be." 

A  smile  played  around  the  features  of  several 
of  the  listeners  while  a  slight  titter  of  ridicule 
rippled  through  the  company.  The  silent  sar- 
casm touched  the  speaker's  sensibilities  and 


A  COLD  WAVE  205 

flung  a  slight  color  into  his  face,  though  he  con- 
tinued with  somewhat  modified  expressions. 

"I  don't  mean  to  say  that  Jesus  Christ  would 
say  jest  exactly  what  I  do  be  sayin',  nor  do  I 
class  meself  as  no  where  near  his  equal  in  nothin' 
that's  good — "  another  ruffle  of  merriment — 
"but  I  do  mean  to  say  that  he'd  be  on  me  side 
in  the  game  against  capitalism  an*  greed.  He 
did  champion  the  cause  o'  the  downtrodden 
an'  he  do  be  do  it  yit;  an'  if  he  was  here  in  person 
now,  he'd  be  on  the  side  o'  the  miners  in  the 
greatest  game  ever  played  on  this  old  planet. 
We  ain't  goin'  int'  it  with  the  sword.  We  give 
the  operators  a  fair  chance  t'  arbitrate  er  deliver 
up  the  goods  to  us  in  a  square  deal  an'  play  a 
fair  game;  but  if  they  try  to  give  us  an  upper 
cut  er  a  left  hand  swing,  we'll  show  'em  that  our 
great  army  o'  brain  an'  brawn  ken  use  the  shootin' 
iron  as  handy  as  the  drill  or  crowbar. 

"I  declare  ag'in,  that  the  masses  do  be  on  our 
side  an'  loyal  to  our  leader.  He's  not  in  the 
game  fur  blood  but  he'll  have  to  take  it  if  the 
masses  demand  it;  an'  they'll  demand  it,  too, 
if  the  operators  don't  take  back  some  o'  their 
highfalutin  gab.  Ev'ry  local  I've  visited  stands 
on  tiptoe  to  hear  the  news  what  has  come  to  us 
tonight,  an'  it's  no  good  news  by  no  means — 
specially  fur  the  operators. 

"I  tell  'e  fellows,  we're  sure  of  our  rights  simply 
because  the  right  do  be  on  our  side.  This  gov- 
er'ment  do  be  in  fur  the  square  dela  an"  we  do  be 
a  Christian  gover'ment.  That  means  that  the 
gover'ment  is  fur  the  majority  an'  not  fur  the 
minority;  an'  that  means  that  the  war  kin'  men 
rules.  That's  sound  logic  an'  sound  sense,  an'  I 


206  A  FAST  GAME 

do  be  here  not  only  to  advocate  the  doctrine 
by  me  mouth  but  by  me  life,  if  it  coomes  to  that. 
Therefore,  I  do  say,  an'  I  say  t  iemphatically, 
down  with  the  rich  demagogues  an'  down  with 
the  capitalists,  the  destroyers  of  our  liberty!" 

He  had  only  warmed  up  to  his  subject  and 
paused  for  oratorical  effect  when  Ed  Slocum 
calmly  said  between  his  teeth — he  held  an  ex- 
tinguished cigar  in  his  mouth — "Say,  Morgan, 
did  not  your  boasted  labor  leader  and  agitator, 
the  Galilean,  as  you  call  him,  once  look  upon  a 
certain  rich  young  man  and  love  him?" 

The  thirsty  crowd  instantly  broke  into  an 
uproar,  not  so  much  that  it  comprehended  the 
philosophical  import  of  the  question  and  the 
weight  of  argument  it  contained,  but  because 
the  words  came  from  their  patronizing  pet  and 
generous  gauger.  The  listeners  sympathized  with 
the  sentiments  of  the  harangue  but  would  forsake 
principle  any  time  for  a  glass  of  grog.  By  intui- 
tive genius  they  already  saw  the  coveted  potion 
and  fell  to  without  further  invitation  when  Ed, 
the  rich  young  heir,  waved  his  hand  to  come 
forward,  turned  his  face  to  the  bar  and  reached 
for  a  match  to  light  his  extinguished  cigar. 

The  cold  wave  had  struck  the  city  in  earnest. 
The  joint  regency  of  the  frost  king  and  the  coal 
king  controlled  the  situation  and  pinched  the 
players  in  the  game  of  life.  The  March  lion  lay 
dying,  though  with  many  a  groan  and  tremor, 
nevertheless,  he  lay  dying  before  the  warm  breath 
of  the  south  wind;  but  the  gold  lion  increased  in 
intensity  and  grappled  death  with  a  tenacity  that 
meant  its  final  overthrow. 

However  cold  the  night  or  cold  the  employers' 


A  COLD  WAVE  207 

treatment  of  the  employes,  The  Anthracite  re- 
echoed with  the  chink  of  coin  and  the  rustle  of 
crisp  banknotes.  Mothers  and  children  shivered 
beneath  scanty  bedclothes,  shivered  partly  from 
cold  and  partly  from  fear  of  an  approaching  un- 
steady step;  honest,  abstemious  working  men 
slept  under  their  own  roofs  with  their  families 
and  in  comfort  and  peace;  the  coal  barons,  en- 
sconced in  downy  counterpanes,  slumbered  in 
contentment:  out  of  doors,  the  frost  heaved  and 
snapped  and  bit;  within,  behind  closed  doors  and 
drawn  curtains,  in  an  atmosphere  blue  with 
tobacco  smoke,  and  over  many  a  mingled  wine, 
the  red  hands  and  the  black  hands  played  the 
game. 


CHAPTER    XIV 

THE    SUSPENSION 

The  operators'  flat  refusal  of  all  the  demands 
of  the  Union  necessarily  put  a  damper  on  the 
resumption  of  negotiations  between  the  two 
contending  parties.  It  was  only  temporary, 
however,  for  the  Union  gathered  up  its  reins  of 
disappointment,  remassed  its  forces,  took  a  long 
breath  and  got  busy  again  gnawing  on  the  several 
bones  of  contention.  It  called  another  conven- 
tion to  perform  the  arduous  task  of  rearrange- 
ment and  readjustment  of  all  the  details  of  dis- 
agreement. The  scale  committee  began  revising 
the  wage  scale  also,  especially  the  day  wage  scale, 
from  the  highest  paid  company  miner  to  the 
lowest  paid  jigger  boy. 

In  the  meanwhile,  the  portents  in  the  industrial 
skies  indicated  a  strike.  The  business  men  and 
the  miners,  in  fact,  the  public  in  general,  expected 
to  hear  that  the  operators  had  refused  some  of 
the  demands  made  on  them  by  the  Union  and 
had  gone  so  far  as  to  request  a  modification  of  some 
of  the  others,  but  they  read  with  deep  concern 
and  surprise  the  announcement  that  every  re- 
quest made  by  the  Union  had  received  a  prompt 
refusal  by  the  operators.  Grave  faces  appeared 
in  the  streets. 

The  business  of  the  city  slumped.  The  wheels 
208 


THE  SUSPENSION  209 

of  the  stock  exchange  ceased  their  steady  hum 
and  the  financial  circles  held  their  breath.  The 
industrial  lull  loomed  up  like  the  hushed  sights 
and  sounds  of  nature  before  an  approaching 
storm.  Only  the  mines  and  the  anthracite  trans- 
portation railroads  worked  on  full  time,  even 
extra  time  appeared  occasionally  on  the  payrolls. 
But  this  increased  activity  in  only  one  branch  of 
industry  all  the  more  aggravated  the  furor  of  the 
coming  calamity. 

Not  only  did  the  stress  of  the  times  touch  the 
local  financial  interests  but  wherever  the  anthra- 
cite product  was  habitually  consumed,  there  the 
infectious  uncertainty  pulsated  through  every 
capillary  of  marketable  and  business  stock. 
Producers  and  dealers  in  bituminous  products 
hoped  for  a  strike  in  the  anthracite  regions, 
provided  their  own  mine  workers  did  not  initiate 
a  sympathetic  strike.  Inasmuch,  then,  as  the 
nation's  great  manufactories  and  transportation 
companies,  both  by  land  and  water,  primarily 
depended  on  one  or  the  other  of  these  fuels  for 
their  activity,  every  commercial  concern  stood 
on  the  qui  vive  watching  the  financial  weather- 
vane  swinging  in  the  changing  winds  of  the  con- 
ferences and  committee  meetings  of  the  miners 
and  the  operators,  and  awaiting  the  final  change 
which  would  concentrate  the  uncertain  puffs  and 
flurries  of  mercantile  air  into  a  steady  trade  wind. 

Retired  men  of  means,  who  participated  but 
little  in  the  hurley-burley  of  traffic,  whose  com- 
forts would  neither  be  increased  nor  decreased 
by  the  ebb  and  flow  of  the  financial  tide,  cogitated 
and  wondered  why  the  men  in  authority  in  the 
commonwealth  or  the  nation  or  both  did  not  take 


210  A  FAST  GAME 

a  hand  in  the  deliberations  of  the  contentious 
game  and  insist  on  arbitration,  declaring  that  it 
was  an  outrage  for  two  selfish  parties  to  tie  up 
the  nation's  entire  industrial  system  in  order  to 
satiate  their  own  personal  pique  and  ruinous 
revenge. 

Rarely  is  a  nation  so  thoroughly  aroused  as  was 
our  nation  on  this  question,  except  in  time  of 
civil  or  foreign  war;  indeed,  our  nation  was  pass- 
ing through  an  industrial  war  upon  which  the 
kingdoms  of  the  world  looked  with  interest,  and 
studied  with  scientific  sagacity. 

In  the  meanwhile,  the  preparations  for  war 
went  on.  The  cool  headed  officers  of  the  laboring 
columns  augmented  their  ranks,  tightened  the 
lines  of  organization,  looked  well  to  their  treasury, 
counted  the  cost,  steadied  their  solid  phalanx, 
floated  their  banners  to  the  breezes  and  kept  busy 
at  their  signal  stations.  In  this  battle  array, 
Saturday  night,  March  thirty-first,  nineteen  hun- 
dred and  six,  found  them.  At  midnight  the 
agreement  fixed  by  the  arbitration  commission 
would  be  at  an  end.  The  Union  had  said  in  terms 
louder  than  words  that  certain  grievances  must 
be  righted  or  it  would  order  a  strike;  and  the 
operators  had  spoken  just  as  loudly  when  they 
flatly  refused  every  demand  made  by  the  Union. 
Quitting  time  came  on  that  eventful  night  and 
the  Union  miners  and  laborers  took  their  tools 
from  the  mines.  They  also  received  orders  not  to 
return  to  work  until  further  notice. 

The  other  side  had  not  slept  while  its  enemy 
maneuvered.  It  increased  the  police  force  to  guard 
property,  or  initiated  or  arranged  for  one.  The 
operators  retained  non-union  men,  hired  others 


THE  SUSPENSION  211 

and  procured,  secretly  or  openly,  imports  and 
strike-breakers.  As  far  as  possible  they  intended 
to  open  the  mines  on  Monday  morning.  But 
Monday  morning  came  and  no  strike.  A  suspen- 
sion had  taken  its  place — time  for  the  opponents 
to  negotiate,  parley,  disagree,  half-agree,  confer, 
consult,  demand,  refuse,  readjust,  rearrange,  re- 
commit and,  if  possible,  finally  settle. 

At  first,  the  operators  appeared  to  the  Union 
like  a  wall  of  consummate  obstinacy  and  un- 
mitigated selfishness,  while  the  operators  con- 
sidered the  Union  as  a  compound  of  rapacious 
audacity,  egotistical  ambitions  and  opinionated 
conceits.  The  ten  per  cent,  advance  in  wages  and 
the  shorter  day  demanded  by  the  Union  were  on 
the  ground  that  the  miners  were  underpaid  and 
that  their  labor  was  so  arduous  as  to  necessitate 
shorter  days  for  the  physical  good  of  the  workers ; 
on  the  other  hand,  an  argument  came  from  the 
opposition  and  was  published  in  a  certain  journal 
of  the  state  to  this  effect  that  if  "the  workers  in 
the  anthracite  region  are  underpaid,  attention 
should  be  directed  to  the  old  fashioned  truth  that 
a  people's  prosperity  is  measured  by  the  amount 
expended  for  luxuries.  On  this  basis  not  much 
can  be  said  for  the  miners'  contention. 

"In  Pennsylvania  there  is  a  high  license  law 
and  the  cost  of  running  a  liquor  saloon  is  very 
considerable.  Nevertheless,  in  the  town  of  Shen- 
andoah  there  are  one  hundred  and  eighty-three 
licensed  saloons,  or  one  saloon  for  every  sixteen 
voters ;  and  in  Mahanoy  City  there  are  one  hundred 
and  sixty-three  licensed  saloons,  or  one  to  every 
fifteen  voters.  In  some  places,  like  New  Phila- 


212  A  FAST  GAME 

delphia,  there  are  as  many  as  one  saloon  to  every 
six  voters . 

"A  recent  report  of  the  Law  and  Order  Society 
of  Schuylkill  County,  in  the  heart  of  the  anthra- 
cite region,  contained  this  utterance:  Our  county 
stands  first  among  the  sixty-seven  counties  of  the 
state  in  the  number  of  the  saloons  to  the  popu- 
lation. In  the  last  five  years  a  license  has  been 
granted  to  every  one  hundred  and  seventy-three 
persons  in  the  county.  This  one  hundred  and 
seventy-three  includes  men,  women  and  children; 
deduct  the  women  and  the  children  and  there  is 
a  liquor  license  issued  in  this  county  for  every 
fifty  adult  male  persons."  Therefore,  "it  can 
hardly  be  maintained  that  a  community  which 
can  support  the  liquor  traffic  on  this  extraordinary 
scale  is  underpaid." 

It  is  not  strange  in  the  least  that  bodies  of  men 
see  and  treat  similar  bodies  of  men  as  individuals 
see  and  treat  one  another.  The  weak  points  and 
narrow  views  of  the  other  fellow  or  fellows  are 
glaring  faults,  even  outrages,  in  the  opinion  of 
the  other  fellow  or  fellows'  opponent,  and  should 
be  treated  with  a  thorough  course  of  publicity, — 
a  lifting  of  the  lid  of  investigation  to  be  followed 
by  a  general  exposition  of  classified  and  criminal 
minutiae. 

We,  individually  and  collectively,  forget  some- 
times that  once  upon  a  time  in  a  certain  place 
and  under  certain  circumstances  a  certain  teacher 
said  to  His  class,  "He  that  is  without  sin  among 
you,  let  him  first  cast  a  stone"  at  the  condemned 
party.  That  teacher  holds  the  same  position  in 
the  world's  education  today  that  He  held  when 
He  spoke  the  above  words — that  is,  supreme 


THE  SUSPENSION  213 

authority.  He  has  held  His  infinite  patience 
through  all  these  years  and  still  pours  out  His 
perfect  precepts  and  practices  of  fraternity  and 
fellowship  to  a  perverse,  passionate  and  avaricious 
generation  of  human  ambitions,  indulgent  frailties 
and  thoughtless  follies. 

The  old  Slocum  shaft  was  yet  in  ruins,  there 
having  been  no  time  to  rebuild  it  since  the  disaster, 
but  the  Diamond  mine  opened  for  work  on  Mon- 
day morning.  The  company  was  not  certain  that 
all  the  employes  would  return  to  work  but,  relying 
upon  the  honor  of  the  miners  to  do  the  square 
thing  by  their  employers  who  treated  them  with 
honor  and  justice,  it  opened  the  mine  as  usual. 
That  the  individual  company  was  not  in  the 
combine,  however,  made  no  difference.  The 
union  workers,  to  the  man,  remained  from  then- 
posts  of  duty,  though  their  idea  of  the  post  of 
duty  was  to  obey  the  command  of  the  Union  rather 
than  to  exercise  the  right  of  individual  liberty. 

The  non-union  workers  reported  for  work  with 
the  exception  of  a  few  who  dared  not  venture  into 
the  mine  for  fear  of  violence.  During  Sunday, 
the  first  day  of  April,  the  black  hand  notices  had 
been  profusely  distributed,  intimidations  used, 
and,  in  a  few  instances,  threats  made.  These 
means  had  lessened  the  forces  in  the  non-union 
ranks.  Also,  the  fact  that  the  combined  opera- 
tors had  imported  some  strike-breakers,  instead 
of  augmenting  the  force  of  the  non-union  men, 
only  drove  them  from  their  positions  in  the  mines, 
either  because  they  did  not  desire  to  be  classed 
with  the  imports,  or  from  fear  of  violence  which, 
sooner  or  later,  would  come,  for  the  imports  and 
the  union — according  to  the  laws  of  human  nature, 


214  A  FAST  GAME 

and  both  parties  held  diplomas  from  that  school — 
must  necessarily  clash.  The  Black  Diamond 
Company,  however,  smuggled  no  imports  into  its 
mine. 

The  business  of  the  company  continued  on  the 
old  established  principle  of  dealing  with  the 
individual.  On  account  of  this  well-known  prin- 
ciple more  applicants  for  work  came  to  the  inde- 
pendent company  than  to  any  other  in  the  valley. 
Yet  the  number  was  insufficient  to  operate  the 
one  mine. 

The  union  men  knew  very  well  the  sentiment 
of  The  Black  Diamond  Company  on  the  subject 
of  unionism  and  they  also  knew  that  the  company 
would  operate  its  mine  if  men  enough  could  be 
secured,  whether  the  combined  transportation 
companies  would  haul  the  product  or  not.  That 
company's  reputation  in  the  city  stood  on  a  solid 
independent  basis ;  that  being  the  case,  the  opera- 
tion of  that  particular  mine  would  be  a  bone  of 
contention  between  the  two  industrial  forces. 

The  Slocums  held  the  confidence  of  every  in- 
dividual business  man  in  the  valley;  whether  or 
not  he  would  acknowledge  it,  was  another  question. 
One's  personal  principles  are  often  suppressed  or 
held  in  the  background  when  those  of  a  collective 
body  to  which  he  belongs  are  advanced,  even 
though  the  principles  of  the  collective  body  are 
not  exactly  in  keeping  with  his  views,  especially, 
when  it  appeals  to  his  inner  pride  to  adhere  to  the 
postulates  of  the  majority  or  when  it  may  seem  to 
advance  his  own  interest  for  the  time  being. 

Under  these  very  circumstances  many  a  miner 
would  have  gladly  gone  to  work  in  the  Diamond 
mine  had  it  not  been  for  the  sting  it  might  incur 


THE  SUSPENSION  215 

from  his  union  fellows'  ridicule  and  the  fear  of 
violence  from  them  as  well  as  his  final  expulsion 
from  the  mines,  should  the  Union  triumph  in  the 
fight.  Of  course,  there  are  always  a  sacred  few 
who  fear  nothing  but  the  loss  of  personal  liberty 
in  the  exercise  of  their  conscientious  scruples. 
Such  men  found  employment  in  the  Diamond 
mine  on  that  memorable  Monday  morning. 

John  Ransom,  Sr.,  was  not  a  union  man  and 
did  not  go  out  with  the  suspension.  He  was 
temporarily  transferred  to  the  superintendency 
of  the  mine  in  the  place  of  Tom  Boland  who  had 
really  disappeared  to  nobody  knew  where.  Tony 
Bandelli,  the  Italian  who  had  dared  to  stand 
alone  for  his  principles  in  The  Anthracite,  went  in 
as  fire-boss.  He  was  no  special  friend  of  the 
senior  Ransom,  but  the  company  insisted  on  the 
promotion  and  it  had  to  go.  The  first  night  after 
he  became  fire-boss  Tony  received  a  black  hand 
letter  containing  a  threat  of  his  life  if  he  did  not 
quit  the  mine  or  pay  the  sum  of  three  hundred 
dollars;  and  he  was  given  three  days  in  which  to 
decide  the  matter.  He  said  nothing  about  it  to 
anyone  and  determined  to  play  his  own  part  in 
the  game  in  spite  of  all  threats. 

The  third  morning,  while  he  went  his  lonely 
round  of  inspection,  he  felt  positive  several  times 
that  he  heard  footsteps  in  distant  chambers  of 
the  mine.  When  the  mine  opened  and  all  the 
laborers  busy  at  work,  Tony  visited  the  stables 
and  enquired  if  any  of  the  mules  had  been  loose 
the  night  before.  They  had  been  found  secure. 
He  concluded  that  some  unknown  person  had 
been  in  the  mine  and  that  his  presence  meant 
evil  to  the  fire-boss.  For  safety,  therefore,  he 


216  A  FAST  GAME 

called  at  the  company's  office,  told  his  story  and 
asked  for  a  guard.  The  company  granted  his 
request,  stationing  an  additional  police  at  the 
entrance  of  the  shaft.  Nothing  suspicious  occurred 
again  for  a  week.  On  that  morning  when  Tony 
came  from  his  work  and  when  he  was  not  more 
than  a  hundred  yards  from  the  shaft  some  un- 
known person  shot  him  from  a  clump  of  bushes 
above  the  path. 

The  fire-boss  yelled  with  pain,  leaped  into  the 
air  and  fell  to  the  ground.  Two  of  the  police 
gave  chase,  but  to  no  purpose.  They  could  not 
locate  the  would-be  assassin  for  he  had  used 
smokeless  powder.  Another  guard  ran  to  the 
wounded  man.  The  report  of  the  gun  brought 
a  score  of  men  on  the  spot  at  once.  The  non- 
union miners  were  on  their  way  to  work  and  many 
of  the  union  men  hung  on  their  flanks  to  intimi- 
date, persuade  or  jeer  them,  or  to  look  on  in  si- 
lence. The  news  of  the  attempted  murder  spread 
like  wildfire.  In  five  minutes  more  than  a  hun- 
dred men  rushed  to  the  scene. 

Tony  lay  unconscious,  bleeding  from  a  bullet 
wound  in  the  forehead — how  seriously  the  wound 
was,  no  one  knew.  The  little  group  of  non-union 
men  surrounding  him  was  too  afraid  for  their 
lives  to  examine  him.  A  half  dozen  police  sur- 
rounded the  group,  and,  in  turn,  they  were  sur- 
rounded by  a  mob  of  union  men,  that  jeered  and 
swore  and  threatened  and  shouted,  "It's  good 
'nough  fur  'im!"  "There's  more'll  git  the  same 
dose  if  they  don't  quit  work." 

Excitement  ran  high  while  the  mob  pressed 
closer  and  closer  to  the  inner  circle.  "Scab!" 
came  from  all  sides.  The  police  drew  their  revol- 


THE  SUSPENSION  217 

vers  and  threatened  to  use  them  if  the  crowd  did 
not  disperse. 

"Shoot,  if  ye  dare!"  came  the  defiant  answer 
while  a  dozen  other  revoverls  gleamed  from  the 
other  ranks.  "We'll  take  'are  of  ourselves. 
Shoot,  damn  ye!  We  want  the  honor  o'  buryin' 
a  lot  o'  scabs!" 

A  stone  came  from  the  crowd  and  dropped 
among  the  non-union  men.  A  policeman  fired 
into  the  air  and  shouted,  "Back!" 

The  shot  was  answered  by  a  score  of  shots  in 
the  air,  some  so  close  to  the  ground  that  the 
smaller  group  heard  the  whistling  bullets.  The 
game  opened  then  in  a  general  fusilade  with  an 
occasional  shout  from  first  one  and  then  the 
other  as  the  flying  missiles  took  effect.  The 
battle  became  desperate  and  no  one  knows  what 
the  result  would  have  been  had  not  just  at  this 
time  a  woman  appeared  in  the  midst  of  the  fray. 
Where  the  bullets  flew  the  thickest  she  stood  and 
waved  a  white  hand  Th.e  firing  ceased  at  once 
and  a  hush  fell  on  the  disquieted  combatants. 

"Don't,  friends!"  said  Naomi,  her  voice  being 
heard  by  every  man. 

They  obeyed.  The  union  men  slunk  away  in 
groups — one  or  two  limping;  several  others,  sup- 
ported by  friends;  and  two  whom  their  comrades 
carried.  Naomi  walked  into  the  little  squad  of 
defenders  and  began  to  assist  the  wounded.  None 
had  been  killed.  The  other  party  had  suffered 
more  because  their  shots  had  gone  through  the 
non-union  ranks  and  occasionally  had  taken 
effect  among  their  own  men  on  the  other  side 
of  the  circle. 

She  called  an  ambulance  and  sent  three  men 


218  A  FAST  GAME 

to  the  hospital;  among  them  lay  Tony  who  had 
regained  consciousness.  His  wound  was  not 
serious — the  effect  of  a  bad  aim  for  the  brain 
though  the  bullet  on'y  grazed  the  skull. 

By  the  time  the  riot  ended  the  superintendent 
appeared  on  the  scene  and  counseled  the  miners 
to  quit  work.  They  were  about  to  obey,  some 
willingly  and  some  reluctantly,  when  Henry 
Slocum  walked  into  the  group.  He  conversed 
a  moment  with  the  superintendent  and,  judging 
by  his  manner,  he  did  not  agree  with  his  employe. 
Turning  to  his  workmen  he  said,  in  a  calm  voice 
though  with  a  sincerity  which  they  all  felt — 
for  they  had  confidence  in  the  man: 

"Men,  I  am  sorry  that  this  unpleasantness  has 
sprung  up  this  morning  and  that  some  of  you 
have  been  called,  not  only  to  stand  for,  but  also  to 
suffer  for  principle.  I  am  here  to  thank  you  for 
so  doing.  I  think  I  understand  your  position 
and  I  assure  you  that  I  heartily  sympathize  with 
you  in  this  situation.  You  have  been  attacked 
by  others  when  you  were  peaceably  carrying 
out  your  own  conscientious  ideas;  the  company's 
property  and  its  men  have  been  endangered  when 
it  tried  to  carry  out  its  own  ideas  of  right  and 
wrong. 

"Our  positions  are  similar.  I  am  here  to  coerce 
no  one  into  my  employ.  When  I  speak  of  myself 
I  also  mean  my  brother  and  my  father  for  they 
are  with  me  in  opinion,  in  justice  and  in  sympathy. 
You  know  that  I  have  always  dealt  personally 
and  fairly  with  you  and  that  no  grievance  has 
ever  come  to  me  which  has  not  had  consideration 
and  a  satisfactory  adjustment."  A  murmur 
of  assent  ran  through  the  assembled  laborers. 


THE  SUSPENSION  219 

"I  propose  to  keep  on  doing  business  at  the 
same  old  stand  and  in  the  same  old  way.  All 
of  you  who  wish  to  enter  the  mine  under  the 
present  pressing  circumstances  are  at  liberty 
to  do  so.  Each  shall  be  remunerated  accordingly. 
I  cannot  guarantee  you  absolute  safety.  There 
are  certain  personal  risks  that  you  must  run  and 
that  against  powers  over  which  I  have  no  control. 
I  will  guarantee,  however,  that,  should  any  injury 
come  to  you  from  the  opposing  party  while  in 
my  employ,  your  time  shall  go  on  while  you  are 
disabled  and,  should  more  serious  mishap  befall 
you,  your  families  shall  not  suffer  for  the  neces- 
sities of  life  so  long  as  I  have  a  crust  to  share 
with  them." 

These  words  simply  carried  the  listeners  with 
them.  Many  shouts  of  approval  came  from  the 
honest  miners.  "That's  'o!  That's  'o!"  and 
"We'll  stand  by  ye!  We'll  stand  to  the  last 
ditch!"  came  from  all  those  present.  Even 
John  Ransom,  Sr.,  bustled  around  as  if  heartily 
in  sympathy  with  the  movement. 

"One  more  word,  men!  I  want  to  thank  you 
for  your  loyalty  to,  and  your  hearty  co-operation 
with,  the  company,  in  this  trying  hour.  You, 
or  some  of  you  at  least,  have  received  black  hand 
notices — threats  on  your  life  or  an  opportunity 
to  receive  or  give  bribes — but  you  have  laid  them 
aside  to  work  for  me;  please  also  remember, 
that  I  have  received  red  hand  threats  if  I  did 
not  discharge  some  of  you  or  pay  the  price.  You 
see  that  our  cause  is  the  same.  I  am  here  not 
only  to  defend  my  rights  and  duties  but  to  defend 
yours  as  well.  I  give  you  my  hand  on  this  mutual 


220  A  FAST  GAME 

contract.  Our  mutual  interests  stand  or  fall 
together.  Are  you  agreed?" 

A  hearty  "Yes!"  followed  the  question.  After- 
ward, every  man  filed  by  his  employer  and  gave 
him  his  callous  hand  as  his  oath  to  the  compact. 
The  superintendent,  however,  held  aloof  until  all 
had  passed.  Then  he  stepped  up  to  Mr.  Slocum 
and  said  fawningly:  "It  is  not  necessary  for  me 
to  extend  to  you  the  right  hand  of  fellowship  at 
this  time,  you  are  already  assured  of  my  loyalty 
to  your  service  and  to  your  cause.  I  advised  the 
men  to  quit  work  because  I  deemed  it  the  best 
for  the  good  of  the  company,  but  since  you  have 
decided  otherwise  I  remain  at  my  post  as  usual. 
Perhaps  a  little  advancement  in  wages  would 
encourage  the  men  to  do  better  work  and  be 
more  faithful  to  duty." 

Henry  Slocum  looked  at  the  superintendent  in 
blank  astonishment.  A  frown  passed  over  his 
brow.  The  underling  wavered  before  his  X-ray 
glance. 

"Look  here,  John!"  he  calculated,  "are  you 
speaking  one  for  the  men  and  two  for  yourself? 
That  is  the  very  principle  at  stake  and  you  are 
the  first  one  to  shatter  it.  As  to  their  loyalty  I 
have  no  fear  and  I  will  reward  them  accordingly 
but  justly,  mind  you;  but  if  it  takes  more  wages 
to  make  you  loyal,  you  receive  no  more.  Your 
hesitancy  and  equivocation  in  your  present  utter- 
ances are  proof  positive  to  me  that  you  want  an 
increase  in  wages  and  want  it  worse  than  the 
men  in  whom  I  have  implicit  confidence.  Please 
remember,  Mr.  Ransom,  that  loyalty  is  always 
to  principle  and  not  to  purse.  After  so  long  a 
term  of  service,  if  you  have  no  more  confidence 


THE  SUSPENSION  221 

in  my  justice  than  to  make  such  an  assertion  as 
you  have  just  made,  you  are  not  a  safe  man  to 
whom  to  trust  my  men  in  these  times.  Come  to 
the  office  with  me  and  we  will  have  a  settlement 
at  once." 

Mr.  Slocum  turned  on  his  heel  and  strode  away 
toward  the  street  car  line  at  a  rate  of  speed  that 
suggested  that  the  work  could  not  be  done  any 
too  soon.  Mr.  Ransom  trotted,  rather  more  than 
walked,  on  behind.  The  employer  stood  six 
feet  in  stature  while  the  superintendent  was  a 
little  above  five  and  rather  corpulent  at  that. 
It  is  no  wonder,  then,  that  the  latter  wheezed 
when  they  stood  on  the  corner  a  few  minutes 
later  waiting  for  the  car.  He  had  toiled  hard  to 
keep  pace  with  his  pedestrian  leader.  Ransom 
had  several  times  expostulated  with  the  irate 
Slocum  but  the  only  answer  was  a  wave  of  the 
hand. 

In  silence,  therefore,  save  for  the.  grinding  of 
cinders  beneath  soles  which  went  on  business  of 
importance,  the  two  entered  the  office  of  The 
Black  Diamond  Company  . 

Benjamin  Slocum  and  Eva  Morgan  were  the 
only  occupants  of  the  rooms.  The  younger 
brother  arose  with  anxiety  and  greeted  his  brother 
warmly.  He  was  about  to  ask  concerning  the 
fray  at  the  breaker  when  he  detected  his  brother's 
agitated  condition.  He  took  in  the  situation 
at  once  and  returned  to  his  desk,  more  to  meditate 
than  to  work.  The  elder  brother  returned  the 
salutation  in  a  kind  though  a  hasty  manner  and 
proceeded  to  settle  matters  with  the  superin- 
tendent. It  was  but  a  period  of  five  minutes  or 
less  when  John  Ransom,  Sr.,  left  the  office  of  The 


222  A  FAST  GAME 

Black  Diamond  Company,  to  return  to  it  no  more 
forever. 

When  the  door  closed  behind  the  discharged 
man  the  brothers  faced  each  other  with  a  most 
fraternal  confidence  and  began  a  long  consultation 
in  regard  to  the  wisest  methods  to  adopt  in  order 
to  continue  the  operation  of  the  mine,  to  guard 
the  rights  of  their  employes,  to  protect  their  own 
property  and  lives  and  to  select  a  superintendent 
to  take  the  place  of  the  one  just  discharged. 

"I  say,  Hen!"  thoughtfully  suggested  Benjamin, 
"if  only  Tom  Boland  was  here  now,  where  he 
ought  to  be,  he  would  fill  the  bill  exactly." 

A  slight  flush  crept  over  the  face  of  the  senior 
brother  as  he  replied;  "I  know  it,  Ben.  I  had 
him  in  mind." 

"But  my  impression  is  that  he  will  never  come 
back  for  his  job.  He  may  be  doing  what  he  said 
he  would  try  to  do  but  I  don't  believe  it  and, 
even  if  he  is,  he  ought  to  make  known  to  us  his 
whereabouts.  He  has  been  most  reliable  since 
he  straightened  up  a  year  or  so  ago  but  I  honestly 
believe  that  he  has  gone  back  to  his  old  way 
and  will  turn  up  in  the  lockup  when  he  does 
turn  up." 

"I  hardly  think  so,  Ben.  I  haven't  the  slightest 
idea  where  he  is  or  what  he  is  doing,  though  I 
have  confidence  that  he  will  be  back  in  a  few  days 
ready  to  take  his  place  with — that  he  had  before." 

Henry  spoke  with  noticeable  emotion,  his 
eyes  having  that  far  away  visionary  expression 
so  characteristic  of  one  in  meditation  on  a  subject 
of  the  gravest  importance. 

"One  thing  that  convinces  me  that  my  opinion 
is  correct  is  that  he  and  Naomi  have  been  on  the 


THE  SUSPENSION  223 

most  intimate  terms.  He  often  frequented  my 
home  in  her  company.  Since  he  went  away  she 
has  not  been  herself.  I  would  not  be  surprised 
if  he  had  been  so  foolish  as  to  ask  for  her  hand  in 
marriage.  Of  course  she  would  refuse  him.  That 
would  drive  him  to  dissipation  and  disturb  her 
peace  of  mind.  For  a  girl  of  her  sensitive  con- 
science, after  what  she  has  done  for  him,  she 
would  condemn  herself  for  doing  a  thing  that 
would  give  an  occasion  for  his  fall.  She  says 
nothing  about  him  but  she  courts  the  favor  of 
Dr.  Morgan  more  than  usual.  Perhaps  I  am 
mistaken  in  my  inference,  though  I  do  not  believe 
I  am.  Tom  is  a  good  business  man  and  perfectly 
trustworthy,  but  I  am  afraid  that  Cupid's  shafts 
have  poisoned  him.  If  he  had  some  of  your 
grit  in  his  veins  he  might  stand  the  shock." 

The  last  sentence  conveyed  a  slight  ripple  of 
banter  in  it  respecting  the  elder  brother's  matri- 
monial ventures  and  his  present  state  of  bachelor- 
hood, but  it  did  not  have  the  effect  intended  by 
the  speaker.  Instead  of  the  little  pleasantry 
passing  as  such  it  seemed  to  strike  the  other  in 
an  entirely  different  manner.  Henry  flushed,  be- 
came choked  and  agitated.  For  a  moment 
there  was  silence  between  them. 

"You  have  no  business  to  bring  such  flippant 
suggestions  into  the  discussion  of  this  question 
of  so  great  importance,"  at  last  began  Henry 
with  some  heat.  "One's  sympathies  should  al- 
ways be  on  the  side  of  the  prisoner  until  he  be 
found  guilty." 

"I  beg  your  pardon,  Hen!"  quickly  put  in 
Benjamin  when  he  perceived  how  his  brother 
received  his  kindly  meant  insinuation.  "You 


224  A  FAST  GAME 

are  right  and  I  was  wrong  in  speaking  as  I  did. 
I  promise  you  I  will  never  allude  to  the  question 
again." 

Henry  a*rose  and  spoke  in  a  firm  tone,  still 
having  that  far  off  expression  in  his  eyes  as  if 
he  had  not  heard  the  last  remarks:  "I'll  tell  you 
what  I'll  do,  Ben,  I  will  act  as  superintendent  of 
the  mine  till  Tom  shows  up.  I  have  no  excuses 
or  reasons  to  offer  for  his  absence  when  we  so 
much  need  him  but  I  have  confidence  enough  in 
him  to  take  his  place  till  he  returns,  and  returns 
like  a  man!" 

Ben  was  on  his  feet  in  an  instant  and  protested 
against  such  an  action  on  the  part  of  his  brother. 
"Why,  Hen,  that  would  never  do.  You  might 
lose  your  head  in  such  a  foolhardy  undertaking. 
I  might  better  go  than  you.  In  fact,  I  will  take 
Ransom's  place  through  this  stress  of  circum- 
stances." 

"Never,  for  an  instant.  I  am  just  the  man  for 
the  place.  You  have  no  business  there  for  two 
reasons  and  they  are  good  valid  reasons,  too. 
In  the  first  place,  you  have  a  family  and  belong 
to  them  and  have  no  business  to  run  unnecessary 
risks  to  save  a  few  dollars ;  I  have  no  one  dependent 
upon  me  and  my  neck  is  of  little  importance 
anyway.  In  the  second  place,  you  never  worked 
in  the  mines  much  and  have  always  been  in  some 
other  department  of  our  affairs  than  that  con- 
nected with  the  superintendency ;  I  know  the 
ropes  from  one  end  to  the  other.  Father  will 
give  his  consent  and  I  give  myself  as  well  as  my 
consent,  therefore,  you  are  the  minority  of  the 
firm  and  have  nothing  to  do  but  acquiesce." 

"But  look  here,  Henry;  this  is  all  uncalled  for. 


THE  SUSPENSION  225 

We  might  better  close  down  the  mine  rather 
than  for  you  to  risk  yourself  in  a  place  where 
there  is  likely  to  be  a  clash  greater  than  the  one 
this  morning.  Don't  think  of  such  a  thing.  We 
have  not  got  to  work  the  mine  to  get  our  bread 
and  butter." 

While  he  spoke  the  door  opened  softly  and 
their  father  entered  leaning  on  the  arm  of  Naomi. 
The  old  man  appeared  worried  about  the  safety 
of  his  sons,  for  he  immediately  said,  "I  see  ye'r 
safe,  boys!" 

"Yes,  father,"  answered  Henry.  "Everything 
is  all  quiet  now.  I  have  proposed  to  act  as 
superintendent  of  the  Diamond  mine  till  Tom 
returns." 

"John  ben  in  another  muss?"  asked  the  old. 
gentleman,  looking  from  beneath  his  shaggy 
eyebrows.  "Time  the  scamp  got  out!" 

"But,  father,  don't  you  think  it  better  to  shut 
down  rather  than  to  have  Henry  run  such  risks?" 

"Shet  down?  What  fur?  Guess  we  ken  run 
our  machine  yit  a  while!  If  I  was  young  ag'in  I'd 
show  these  frisky  chaps  a  thing  or  two.  No!  let 
Henry  go.  Might  better  die  in  the  right  than 
to  live  in  cowardice." 

"Well,  don't  you  think  it  more  expedient  for 
me  to  take  the  position  than  Henry?" 

While  he  spoke  Naomi  sidled  up  to  him,  twined 
her  arms  in  his,  and  cuddled  up  close  to  his  breast. 
The  act  bore  witness  to  filial  love  and  solicitude 
as  well  as  to  a  sacred  sense  of  paternal  protection. 
The  patriarch  observed  the  trinity  of  graces  in 
the  young  woman  and  answered  the  son  entirely 
in  keeping  with  the  lesson  of  so  beautiful  a  picture. 

"With  them  arms   'round  ye,  Bennie?     Henry 


226  A  FAST  GAME 

knows  the  tricks  o'  the  trade,  too;  you  don't!" 

During  the  silence  which  followed  the  acute 
ears  in  the  office  heard  the  elevator  boy  sing  out 
cheerily,  "That  room,  there!"  A  moment  later 
a  timid  knock  on  the  door  announced  a  visitor. 


CHAPTER    XV 
UNCLE  EZEKIEL'S  VISIT 

Naomi  immediately  opened  the  door  and  a 
man  of  perhaps  seventy-five  years  of  age  stood 
before  The  Black  Diamond  Company.  To  the 
practiced  eye  he  was  "a  down  east  Yankee"  and 
no  mistake,  whole-hearted,  puritanic,  conservative, 
industrious,  frugal  to  the  extent  of  parsimony 
and.  in  this  particular  case,  savoring  of  the  fields — 
there  could  be  no  mistaking  him  from  other 
than  a  prosperous  New  England  farmer.  From 
the  wide  brimmed  hat  to  the  broad  common 
sense  shoes  he  was  clothed  in  black,  except  the 
flaring  stand-up  collar  and  the  white  shirt  front. 
His  face  shone  with  honesty  and  good-natured 
curiosity;  his  chin  lay  partially  hidden  behind  a 
bunch  of  whiskers  which  were  streaked  with  iron 
gray. 

In  his  right  hand  he  firmly  held  a  stout  walking 
stick,  in  his  left,  he  carried  a  good-sized,  serviceable 
telescope  with  an  overcoat  and  umbrella  snugly 
tucked  under  its  straps.  His  shoulders  were 
slightly  stooped  with  a  corresponding  upward 
trend  of  his  chin.  Standing  squarely  and  firmly 
on  his  feet,  indicative  of  a  vigorous  body  and  a 
forcible  character,  and  filling  the  whole  doorway, 
he  faced  the  Slocums  with  an  eagerness  and 
penetration  which  meant  nothing  short  of  absolute 
227 


228  A  FAST  GAME 

identity  of  the  individuals  before  him.  Uncle 
Hiram  took  but  one  look  at  the  stranger  and, 
spryly  for  his  years,  started  for  him  with  out- 
stretched arms,  saying  in  a  voice  of  mingling 
surprise  and  joy:  "Well,  Zeke,  is  that  ye-oo?" 

"  Tain't  nobody  else,  Hi,"  quickly  answered 
the  visitor  whisking  his  cane  from  his  right  hand 
to  his  left  in  which  he  still  clung  to  the  telescope, 
as  if  fearing  its  sudden  flight.  "Thought  I'd 
hunt  ye  up." 

The  two  brothers  clasped  hands  and  held 
them  awkwardly  like  two  delighted  playmates 
who  are  so  pleased  to  meet  each  other  after  a 
long  separation  that  words  are  inadequate  to 
express  their  joy  until  the  eyes  are  satisfied  with 
drinking  in  the  familiar  features  of  the  other  and 
the  hands  have  caressed  the  familiar  and  friendly 
form. 

"I'm  awful  glad  to  see  ye,  Zeke." 

"Yes,  Hi,  it's  kinder  betwixt  an'  between  hay 
an'  grass  an'  I  couldn't  do  nothin'  on  the  place, 
so  I  thought  I'd  come  out  an'  scrape  a'quaintance 
ag'in." 

Ezekiel  Slocum  still  stood  in  the  door,  his  eyes 
taking  in  everything  in  sight  while  his  older 
brother  apparently  blocked  the  entrance  in  his 
absorbing  gratification  over  the  unexpected  meet- 
ing. Naomi  quietly  relieved  the  traveler  of  his 
baggage,  took  his  left  hand  in  hers,  put  her  right 
arm  around  his  neck  and  kissed  him,  saying, 
"I,  too,  am  real  pleased  to  see  you,  Uncle  Ezekiel. 
I  am  Naomi." 

The  old  man  looked  down  into  the  sweet  up- 
turned face  and  most  tenderly  said,  "This  is 
Ben's  girl  I've  heered  so  much  about,  is  it?  It 


UNCLE  EZEKIEL'S  VISIT  229 

makes  an  ol*  bushwhacker  like  me  tickled  all 
over  to  have  such  a  girl  as  you  be,  hug  'im." 

Henry  and  Benjamin  then  came  forward  and 
greeted  their  uncle.  Many  years  had  passed 
since  either  of  them  had  seen  him,  not  because 
they  did  not  love  him  or  that  they  were  too 
aristocratic  for  his  station  in  life,  but  more  be- 
cause of  preoccupation  in  business  and  a  desire 
for  seclusion  and  rest  rather  than  visiting,  when 
the  opportunity  offered  a  leave  of  absence  from 
their  cumulative  duties.  As  the  years  crept  on 
over  the  brothers,  the  one  in  Connecticut  and  the 
other  in  Pennsylvania,  writing  became  a  burden, 
traveling  a  wearisome  task  and  home  a  place  of 
refuge  and  comfort,  hence,  communication  be- 
tween them  became  more  and  more  neglected 
until  it  had  well  nigh  ceased  except  on  occasions 
of  unusual  family  sorrow  or  misfortune.  It  is 
not  strange  then  that  the  younger  brother  should 
surprise  the  older  one  by  his  unexpected  appear- 
ance. 

"Ben  forty  odd  year  sense  you've  ben  out  in 
the  Beech  Woods,  ain't  it,  Zeke?"  asked  Hiram, 
his  mind  naturally  falling  into  the  years  when  he 
last  entertained  his  brother. 

"Fifty-four  year  ago  las'  fall,  Hi;  that  fall, 
don't  ye  recollect,  ye  had  sech  a  whoppin'  crop  o' 
pertaters.  I'd  jest  turned  twenty-one  then  an' 
come  out  here  to  show  my  authority  an'  see  the 
country.  Yew  lived  up  to  Chehoc'on  then. 
Yew  was  gittin'  toler'bly  oneasy  to  move.  Quite 
a  town  ye  got  here,  Hi.  Bigger'n  I  had  an  idee 
it  was,"  concluded  the  old  man  as  he  peered  out 
of  one  of  the  windows  over  acres  of  house  tops 
and  streets. 


230  A  FAST  GAME 

"Yes,  Zeke,  it's  quite  a  place  to  what  it  was 
when  I  come  to  these  diggin's."  Turning  to  his 
sons  he  went  on,  "Boys,  guess  Zeke  an'  me'll 
mosey  along  up  t'  the  house.  Ev'rything  '11  be 
all  right  to  the  mine,  now.  Pleasant  will  pilot 
us,  won't  ye?" 

He  spoke  the  last  words  to  Naomi  who  imme- 
diately consented  and  led  the  way.  The  fort- 
night that  followed  was  freighted  with  many  a 
stirring  event  but  the  companionship  of  the  two 
brothers,  who  so  seldom  met  in  their  declining 
years,  is  of  so  unique  a  character,  so  simple  and 
childlike,  so  humorously  pathetic  and  beautiful, 
that  we  must  pause  for  a  while  in  our  story  to 
enjoy  their  society,  sit  at  the  feet  of  these  old 
children  and  learn  of  them.  Naomi  hovered 
around  them  like  a  guardian  angel,  administered 
to  their  every  want,  anticipated  their  needs  and 
withheld  from  them  everything  possible  that 
would  mar  their  happiness  and  comfort. 

April  smiled  one  day  until  the  city,  the  moun- 
tains about  it  and  the  river  sympathetically 
laughed  with  sunshine.  The  air  quivered  and 
bathed  in  it;  roofs,  pavements,  glass  and  steel 
rails  reflected  it;  nature  absorbed  it;  and  faces 
and  hearts,  readily  susceptible  to  the  infection, 
mirrored  it.  The  spring  fever  sprayed  the  entire 
city  with  its  innocuous  and  volatile  tincture 
until  the  lazy  breeze  bore  it  to  the  uttermost 
parts  of  every  inhabitant,  into  every  chamber 
and  cellar  and  around  every  street  corner  and 
smokestack;  even  the  rapidly  revolving  fans — 
those  which  did  not  hang  motionless  on  account 
of  the  suspension — caught  the  soporific  influence 


UNCLE  EZEKIEL'S  VISIT  231 

and  whisked  it  down  the  shafts  and  into  every 
gangway,  breast  and  chamber  of  the  mines. 

Smoke  from  the  furnaces  languidly  coiled  itself 
into  nothingness  while  the  escaping  steam  from 
hundreds  of  boilers  and  engines  never  even  opened 
its  eyes  to  look  upon  the  awakening  summer 
but  invisibly  stole  away  up  the  sunbeams  to  their 
downy  clouds  beds.  The  rumble  of  drays,  the 
clatter  of  horses'  hoofs,  the  clang  and  jungle  of 
bells,  the  hum  of  the  trollies  and  the  roar  of  in- 
dustry that  was  not  connected  with  the  anthracite 
trade,  seemed  to  be  muffled  by  the  listless  atmos- 
phere and  its  delightful,  dreamy  touch.  In  fact, 
nature  apparently  sympathized  with  the  spirit 
of  the  suspension  by  making  hazy  all  her  sights 
and  hushing  all  her  sounds,  save  where  the  English 
sparrows  chirp  their  discordant  note,  "and  drowsy 
tinklings  lull  the  distant  folds." 

"Won't  you  and  Uncle  Ezekiel  come  out  on  the 
balcony,  grandfather?"  asked  Naomi  of  the  two 
old  men  who  contentedly  conversed  or  sat  in 
silence  in  the  sittingroom.  Naomi  spent  more 
of  her  time  with  her  grandfather  now  than  she 
did  at  her  own  home. 

"Don't  mind,  Pleasant.  Come  on,  Zeke,  an' 
take  a  sniff  o'  Pennsylvany  air.  We  don't  have 
none  o'  yer  saltwater  wind  tainted  with  wooden 
nutmegs  here." 

Hiram  Slocum,  with  boyish  pride  for  his  city 
which  he  had  seen  grow  from  a  country  cross- 
road, led  the  way  to  a  couple  of  easy  rockers  on  the 
west  balcony;  Ezekiel,  equally  proud  of  his  native 
Connecticut  soil,  followed  closely  behind  critically 
sniffing,  looking  and  listening  with  all  the  powers 
of  those  three  senses,  in  order  to  detect  some 


232  A  FAST  GAME 

detracting  influence  inferior  to  his  New  England 
environment. 

"Jocks!  Hi,  I'd  jest  as  soon  an'  a  leetle  sooner 
snuff  the  smell  o'  fish  an"  nutmegs  's  the  stink  o' 
yer  smokestacks  an'  back  yards.  I'd  give  a 
quarter  this  minute  fur  a  good  whiff  of  air  frum 
my  back  lots;  none  o'  yer  contaminated  stuff." 

"That's  'o,  Zeke,  but  ye  can't  touch  yer  feller 
man  there  like  ye  ken  here." 

"Well,  I'd  ruther  be  Abraham  in  'is  country 
tent  than  Lot  in  'is  city  castle;  an'  I  guess  the 
Almighty  thought  jest  as  much  of  Abraham  as 
he  did  o'  Lot,  an'  I  think  a  dumbed  lot  more, 
tew,  Hi." 

The  old  man  gave  a  satisfied  chuckle  at  his 
remark  and  gazed  off  over  the  valley.  The 
balcony  was  in  the  rear  of  the  house  and  from  it 
could  be  seen  the  greater  part  of  the  city  with 
its  surrounding  mountains. 

"That's  not  sayin'  that  Sodom  didn't  need 
Abraham  more'n  it  wanted  Lot.  A  man's  duty 
don't  allers  give  'im  the  softest  snap  by  no  means. 
I  like  the  hills  's  well 's  yew  do,  but  I'd  feel  's  guilty 
to  desert  the  poor  people  in  this  city  's  I  would 
if  I  deserted  my  fam'ly.  Not  all  the  folks,  who 
need  help  most,  are  poor  folks  neither.  I  may 
feel  like  playin'  Joner  once  in  a  while  but  I'll  be 
hanged  if  I'll  pay  my  fare  to  a  gentile  ship  owner 
to  shirk  my  duty." 

"I  say,  Hi,  what  kind  o'  hills  be  them  over 
there  across  the  brook — them  black  heaps  like?" 

"Them's  collum  piles." 

"Collum  piles?     What's  collum?" 

"It's  dirt  an'  slate  frum  the  mines,  the  leavin's 


UNCLE  EZEKIEL'S  VISIT  233 

say;  coal  dust  an'  stuff  that  ain't  no  good 
was  bin's." 

"Washin'?  Well,  by  jocks!  What  they  want 
'o  to  wash  it  fur?  They  can't  make  it  white, 
ken  they?" 

The  elder  brother  chuckled  to  himself  to  think 
that  his  own  brother  should  get  such  an  idea  in 
his  mind  as  to  wash  a  culm  pile  white. 

"When  we  fust  begun  to  mine  coal  we  was 
wasteful  an'  dumped  out  lots  o'  good  coal  with 
the  leavin's.  Now  we've  got  more  sense  an' 
don't  throw  away  nothin'  we  ken  use.  We  even 
wash  the  ol'  collum  piles — he,  he! — that  is,  git 
the  smallest  sizes  o'  coal  out  by  runnin'  the 
collum  in  water  over  screens  of  different  sizes." 

"Then,  did  they  dig  them  piles  out  o'  the  mines?" 

"Yes!" 

"Wasted  a  lot  o'  good  ground  to  dump  their 
scatterin's  on.  I  wouldn't  have  that  on  my  wust 
lot  er  the  wust  acre  o'  pastur'  I  got  fur  the  best 
hunderd  dollars  they've  got  in  Pennsylvany." 

The  old  man's  mind  wandered  to  his  New 
England  home  and  its  simple  comforts  which 
he  had  accummulated  througth  he  long  years  of 
thrift  and  toil.  In  all  his  three  score  and  fifteen 
years  he  had  not  spent  more  than  six  years  off 
the  little  farm  where  he  had  been  born,  and  that 
was  at  Chehocton  with  his  father.  His  frugality 
had  gradually  merged  into  stinginess,  narrowed 
his  experience  and  shut  in  his  mental  vision.  He 
had  never  heard  the  call  of  the  wilds,  the  hum  of 
the  city  or  the  cry  of  humanity,  yet,  withal,  he 
was  a  good  neighbor,  odd  and  strictly  upright, 
and  without  an  immoral  stain. 

"I   carcerlate,   Hi,   I'm   'bout   's  well   fixed   's 


234  A  FAST  GAME 

most  o'  men,  considerin'  what  I've  had  to  dew. 
The  ol'  humstead  's  neat  's  a  pin  an'  I've  got  a 
few  shiners  in  the  bank  besides."  He  stroked 
his  chin  with  evident  complacency.  "Reckon  I 
ken  look  my  feller  cre'tur's  in  the  face  an'  say, 
'I'm  wuth  a  cool  ten  thousan'.'  ' 

The  last  words  revealed  an  innocent  pride  in 
his  well  earned  prosperity.  Hiram  sat  quietly 
for  a  while,  thinking  what  he  had  better  say. 
He  did  not  wish  to  be  conceited  nor  did  he,  in 
any  way,  wish  to  belittle  his  brother's  conception 
of  the  great  world's  marketplace,  yet  he  did 
desire  to  show  to  him  the  contrast  of  environment 
between  an  anthracite  mining  city  and  a  country 
farm.  While  he  hesitated  his  brother  scanned 
the  immediate  premises  and,  from  what  he  had 
seen  in  the  interior  of  the  house,  ventured  a 
guess  at  the  value  of  the  property. 

"My  house  ain't  's  big  's  yourn  but  they  ain't 
a  cent  ag'inst  it.  Frum  the  looks  o'  things  this 
'ere  buildin'  must  be  wuth  clus  on  to  ten  thousan'." 

That  quiz  started  the  entering  wedge  to  Hiram's 
thought  and  he,  therefore,  answered  simply. 
"Twice  that  wouldn't  kiver  it,  no,  ner  thrice  it. 
I  give  'way  mor'en  that  ev'ry  year  an'  have 
ben,  too,  fur  more  'n  a  score  o'  year." 

"Well,  by  gosh!  Hi,  that  beats  the  Dutch! 
Yew  must  make  slathers  o'  money  er  ye  couldn't 
afford  to  sling  it  'round  like  that.  What  d'ye 
give  tew?  the  dominie  an'  the  missionary  cause?" 

"Yes,  a  leetle.  There's  a  hunderd  an'  one 
things  here  to  give  tew  where  yew  don't  git  the 
one.  The  trouble  is,  there's  so  much  to  do  that 
a  feller  wishes  "e  was  in  ballyhack." 

"I  shud  think  's  likely,  if  that's  the  way  things 


UNCLE  EZEKIEL'S  VISIT  235 

pan  out.  Wages  hain't  very  high  here,  be  they, 
if  there's  so  many  poor  to  tend  tew?" 

"I  have  miners  who  git  more  'n  a  hunderd  an' 
twenty-five  dollars  a  month  fur  less  'n  six  hours 
a  day's  work,  an'  youngsters  down  in  their  teens 
gittin'  a  dollar  an'  a  quarter  a  day." 

"Ten  shillin'  a  day's  rattlin'  good  wages  seems 
to  me.  'F  I  was  young  an'  strong  's  I  was  once 
I'd  think  I  was  well  paid  to  hire  out  by  the  month 
on  a  farm  fur  twenty- five  dollars  an'  my  board 
an'  it  'ud  be  mor'n  six  hours  a  day,  tew.  Can't 
git  nobody  to  work  fur  ye  now  that's  wuth  nothin'. 
Ain't  one  out  of  a  dozen  that's  wuth  a  straw  on 
a  farm  no  more.  I  never  see  the  beat.  I  don't 
know  what  we're  comin'  tew.  Ev'ry  Tom, 
Dick  an'  Harry's  crazy  fur  the  city,  an'  I  don't 
wonder  if  they  pay  sech  allfired  big  wages  as 
yew  tell  on." 

"Yes,  wages  is  high  but  other  things  is  jest  a 
leetle  bit  higher  an'  the  devil's  a  leetle  sharper  an' 
betwixt  the  two  it's  purty  hard  sleddin'  fur  a 
poor  man.  An'  I  guess,  if  the  truth  was  known, 
it's  jest  about  the  same  thing  with  the  rich; 
six  o'  one  an'  half  dozen  o'  th'  other." 

"Tew  turn  the  subject,  Hi;  what  makes  that 
water  er  stun  er  somethin'  else  there  t'  the  right 
o'  that  collum  pile  look  so  yaller?" 

"Oh,  that's  a  stream  from  the  Hill  Top  Coal 
company's  mines.  The  water's,  got  lots  o'  sulphur 
in  it  an'  makes  ev'rything  yeller  it  touches.  When 
the  mine  water  strikes  the  river  it  soon  stops  its 
colorin'." 

"River?  That  yer  Lackawanny  river.  'Tain't 
bigger  'n  the  brook  runnin'  through  Sandy  Hook." 

"Oh,  yes,  'tis,  Zeke,  quite  a  consider 'ble." 


236  A  FAST  GAME 

"Now,  Hi,  I've  got  purty  good  eyes  fur  an  ol' 
coon  an'  I'm  no  slouch  in  judgin'  distance,  an' 
I'll  bet  ye  a  quart  o'  cider  ag'in  a  peck  o'  peas 
that  yer  river  ain't  twenty  yard  wide  there  by  that 
'ere  slope  wall." 

"Mebbe  yer  right,  but  it's  bigger  'n  yer  Sandy 
Hook  crick." 

"Nothin'  to  brag  of.  What  makes  the  water 
look  so  tarneled  black?" 

"The  collum  in  it.  Gits  purty  nigh  thick  in 
dry  times." 

"Hain't  that  somebody  in  swimmin'  there  'n 
the  eddy?"  queried  Ezekiel  as  he  noticed  some 
white  specks  darting  hither  and  thither  in  the 
water  where  the  stream  flowed  around  the  foot 
of  a  culm  bank.  The  eddy  was  nearly  a  half 
mile  away. 

"Breaker  boys  an'  chaps  play  in'  hookey.  If 
the  truant  officer  gits  after  'em  ye'll  see  a  scat- 
terin.'" 

"Swimmin'  down  in  that  black  hole?  I  couldn't 
let  my  ol'  sow  waller  in  sech  a  place.  Say,  Hi, 
speakin'  about  swimmin',"  and  the  namesake  of 
the  great  visionary  prophet  shook  with  delight 
and  pounded  his  cane  on  the  floor  in  the  outward 
expression  of  his  feelings,  "reminds  me  o'  the 
time  when  father  ketched  me  an'  yew  in  swimmin' 
down  b'low  the  village,  jest  above  where  the  rubber 
fact'ry  is  now.  Ha,  ha-a, — He-he-e-e-,  Hi!" 

The  narrator  of  boyish  pranks  and  capers  went 
off  into  a  fit  of  laughter — a  tonic  superior  in 
every  way  to  any  apothecary's  tonic  compounded 
in  the  land.  The  two  old  men  were  children 
again  and  for  half  an  hour  they  smothered  with 
rollicking  merriment  and  boyhood  reminiscences. 


UNCLE  EZEKIEL'S  VISIT  237 

"He  knowed  jest  as  well  's  I  knowed  that  yew 
coaxed  me  off  down  there.  I  ken  hear  yew  say  in' 
yet,  'Aw,  Zeke,  come  on,  pa  won't  know  nothin' 
'bout  it!'  He,  he!  Hi,  he  did  though  but! 
Jest  'bout  the  time  ye  got  yer  trousers  off  an* 
was  onbottonin'  yer  striped  hickery  shirt — he,  he! 
— father  come  sneakin'  down  the  bank  with  a 
waterbeech  sprout  'bout  three  foot  long.  He,  he, 
he-e-e!  Hi!  Mebbe  yew  didn't  git  'bout  that 
time.  Father  thought  he'd  nab  ye,  but  'e  didn't. 
He  jest  reached  ye  with  'bout  four  inches  o'  the 
gad  as  he  yelled,  'Ye  scalawag!'  But  'e  left  'is 
mark.  An'  if  ever  a  feller  peeled  'er  fur  hum, 
yew  did.  I  jocks!  a  yaller  dog  couldn't  hold  a 
candle  tew  ye  fur  right  down  sailin'.  There  was 
jest  a  streak  o'  shirt  an'  lages  up  through  the 
brush  an'  out  o'  sight.  He,  he,  he-e!  Hi,  Hi!" 

The  happy  old  man  stopped  for  an  instant,  drew 
out  the  ample  folds  of  a  red  bandana  and  wiped 
his  weeping  eyes,  weeping  not  from  sorrow  but 
from  intense  joy,  bordering  hysterics — that 
blissful  emotional  condition  when  one  knows  not 
whether  he  is  laughing  or  crying,  nor  does  he  care. 
Uncle  Hiram  also  sat  chuckling  to  himself  even 
if  the  joke  was  on  him,  though,  like  the  most  of 
us  under  similar  conditions,  he  had  nothing  to  say. 

"Mebbe  /  wan't  scart,  tew!  He,  he-e-e!" 
ending  with  a  long  drawn  out  groan  followed  by 
a  hiccoughy  sigh  of  relief.  "I  couldn't  run  to 
save  my  neck  unless  I  run  frum  hum  an'  I  dasen't 
dew  that  an'  I  couldn't  if  I  dast.  Father  kind  er 
smiled  his  partic'lar  grin  's  'e  picked  up  yer 
overhalls  an'  see  yew  dustin'  up  the  hill  an'  out 
o'  sight.  'Guess  'e  won't  go  fur  in  the  clearin,'  he 
said.  He  turned  to  me  then  and  spoke  like  a 


238  A  FAST  GAME 

general.  'Don't  ye  ever  run  away  with  that 
scamp  ag'in!'  I  knowed  what  'e  meant  an' 
don't  ye  furgit  it.  He  strode  up  through  the 
back  lot  a  sort  o'  hummin'  tew  himself  an*  I 
hobbled  after  'im  barefoot  through  the  haystubble. 
— He,  he,  he-e-e!  Hi!  D'ye  recollect  that  leetle 
pint  o'  secon'  growth  off  t'  the  left?  Yew  stood 
in  there  wavin"  at  me  tew  bring  ye  some  clothes 
but  I  dasen't  wiggle.  I  did  ventur'  t'  ask  father 
'f  I  hadn't  better  take  yer  pants  to  ye  but  'e 
never  said  a  word,  an'  I  didn't  neither  the  rest  o' 
the  day.  He,  he,  Hi!  It  was  most  sundown 
anyway  an'  hotter  'n  blazes.  I  noticed  father 
lock  the  back  door  an'  then  go  out  on  the  back 
stoop  an'  set  down.  Mother  fin'ly  inquired 
where  yew  was.  Father  only  grinned  an'  give 
'er  the  wink  that  yew'd  turn  up  bomby.  Yew 
did,  tew!  'Long  'bout  half  past  eight  er  a  quarter 
to  nine  ye  tried  tew  slip  int'  the  front  door  without 
bein'  seen.  He,  he-e — Hi!  Ye  couldn't  pull 
the  wool  over  father's  eyes  a  single  bit.  'Hello,  Hi,' 
says  'e.  'got  yer  best  bib  an'  tucker  on,  hain't  ye?' 
Yew  never  stopped  but  made  one  dive  through  the 
door  an'  scooted  upstairs  lickity  split." 

"That  ol'  cord  bedstid  never  squeaked  sweeter 
music  to  me  ner  the  feather  bed  never  set  better 
on  my  tanned  hide  than  it  did  that  night.  The 
thunder  shower  that  follered  pattered  a  welcome 
lullaby  on  the  shin'les  which  was  jest  out  o' 
reach  o'  my  arm  when  I  lay  in  bed.  Well,  I 
vum,  Zeke,  them  was  purty  fine  ol'  days  jest  the 
same,  but  they  had  a  leetle  smart  along  with  the 
fun.  I  use  t'  think  father  purty  hash  then  but 
I've  got  many  a  wus  wallopin'  sense,  an'  frum 
them,  tew,  who  pertended  to  be  my  friends.  I 


UNCLE  EZEKIEL'S  VISIT  239 

s'pose  a  feller's  got  to  expect  a  whack  now  an' 
then  till  ol'  father  time  gits  in  the  last  lick." 

Hiram  hesitated  a  moment  in  deep  meditation, 
turned  in  his  chair  and  called  to  Naomi,  "Git 
them  verses  I  read  the  other  day,  Pleasant,  an' 
read  'em  to  us — them  verses  o'  Field's.  Yew 
know  what  I  mean."  \ 

"Surely,  grandfather,  in  just  a  minute!"  she 
answered. 

The  words  had  scarcely  died  on  her  lips  when 
she  appeared  on  the  balcony,  book  in  hand,  say- 
ing, "Here  they  are." 

"Jest  read  'em  to  me  an'  Zeke,  if  ye  please. 
They  'bout  hit  the  nail  on  the  head;  see  'f  they 
don't,  Zeke." 

Hiram's  hands  lay  flat  over  the  head  of  his 
cane.  He  rested  his  chin  on  his  hands  and  squinted 
off  over  the  valley  of  steam  and  smoke  and  dirt 
and  rushing  machinery  and  hustling  humanity; 
Ezekiel  hitched  athwart  his  chair,  cocked  up 
his  head  and  listened  with  all  the  power  of  his 
slowly  deafening  ears;  and  Naomi,  with  a  clear 
and  full  voice,  read  to  the  old  men  who  were 
passing  through  their  boyhood  for  the  second 
time: 
"Bill,  Jim,  and  I,  no  longer  boys,  have 

learned  through  years  of  strife 
That  the  troubles  of  a  little  boy  pursue  the  man 

through  life; 
That  here  and  there  along  the  course  wherein  we 

hoped  to  glide 
Some  envious  hand  has  sprinkled  ashes  just  to 

spoil  our  slide! 
"And,  till  a  man  has  turned  his  face  unto  the  wall 

and  died, 


240  A  FAST  GAME 

He  must  expect  to  get  his  share  of  ashes  on  his 
slide." 

"That's  it,  sure  pop !  If  a  feller  happens  to  make 
a  cent  an'  git  'is  slide  greased  a  leetle  so's  he  ken 
slip  along  purty  midlin'  spry,  there's  allers  some 
ol'  skinflint  to  fling  on  some  ashes  an'  another 
cuss  to  stan'  there  an'  be  rubbin'  on  it  in.  I  tell 
ye  what  it  is,  Hi,  when  them  kind  o'  critters  come 
tinkerin'  'round,  me  I  keep  my  ash  barrel  purty 
midlin'  clus  tew  me.  They've  got  to  git  up  'n 
the  mornin'  to  git  the  worm  afore  me.  I  never 
got  the  spots  knocked  off  me  but  once  an'  that 
was  when  ol'  Si  Miller  beat  me  out  o'  ten  shillin' 
in  a  hoss  trade." 

"A  feller  loses  lots  o'  time  throwin'  ashes  an' 
sometimes  the  wind  'ill  blow  it  back  on  his  own 
slide  er  in  'is  eyes." 

"I  ain't  very  pious  but  I  ken  play  Job  purty 
midlin'  well  on  my  own  ash  heap,  but  jest  let 
another  feller  dump  'is  ashes  over  on  my  pile  an' 
he'll  wish  he'd  stayed  to  hum." 

"Zeke,  ye  ken  play  yer  shenannigans  out  'n 
the  country  an'  in  the  city  but  I've  found  that  a 
feller  has  the  best  o'  the  game  who  plays  fair. 
There's  more  shisterin'  goin'  on  here  in  Onaway 
to  the  square  inch  than  ye  ever  dreamed  of  an' 
if  ye  tend  to  yer  own  business  yew '11  git  fewer 
folks  nosin'  'round  ye  than  if  ye  poked  yer  nose 
into  their'n." 

"What  'n  the  ol'  Harry,  Hi,  give  this  place 
sech  a  name  's  Onaway?"  broke  in  Ezekiel  as  if 
wishing  to  change  the  subject. 

"Oh,  we  got  'o  be  in  style,  Zeke!  They  use  t' 
call  it  Slocum  Holler  till  a  few  years  ago,  with 


UNCLE  EZEKIEL'S  VISIT  241 

their  highfahitin'  notions,  th'  ol'  name  got  out  o' 
date  an'  they  named  the  place  Onaway." 

"After  some  man  er  what?" 

"Onaway  is  an  Injun  name  an'  means  'awake.' 
Slocum  Holler  's  tew  prosy  and  ol'  fashioned,  I 
s'pose." 

"By  jocks!  yer  well  named  fur  I  guess  yer 
'wake  'nough,  accordin'  to  yer  own  tell  an'  by 
the  looks  o'  things.  What  few  folks  there  be  here 
who  want  rest  an'  peace  can't  git  it  fur  the  roar 
an'  hubbub  o'  yer  waggins  an'  cars  an'  all  pandi- 
monium  turned  loose  with  a  tin  teakittle  tied  tew 
it.  Sech  goin's  on,  night  an'  day  an'  Sundays  an' 
all  the  time,  I  never  see.  'Tain't  fit  fur  law 
abidin'  an'  peace  lovin'  folks  to  live  here." 

"One  o'  these  warm  days  we'll  take  ye  up  to 
Chehoc'on  an'  give  ye  a  night  er  tew  o'  rest.  Yer 
ould  eno'gh,  Zeke,  to  stan'  a  leetle  rough  an'  tum'le 
o'  the  world.  'F  ye  want  to  see  things  lively 
ye  ought  to  be  here  when  the  mines  is  runnin' 
full  chisel  an'  the  railroads  is  doin'  full  business." 

The  man  from  down  east  twisted  in  his  chair 
and  squinted  up  and  down  the  valley  at  the 
numerous  moving  locomotives  and  smoking 
chimneys  and  listened  to  the  numberless  and 
various  whistles  in  every  direction  and  finally 
turned  toward  his  brother  and  said  sarcastically, 
"Well,  by  jinks!  Hi,  I  sh'd  think  if  things  run 
much  spryer  they'd  git  hot  'nough  to  siss.  He 
wouldn't  do  no  good  neither,  here  in  this  con- 
sarned  dust  an'  dirt.  It  flies  here  this  minute, 
right  in  April  tew,  wus  'n  it  does  in  Sandy  Hook 
on  the  Fourth.  I  sh'd  think  a  feller's  lungs  'ud 
turn  into  a  coalben  er  a  smokehouse  'f  'e  stayed 
here  long  'nough." 


242  A  FAST  GAME 

"Dinner  is  ready,  grandfather  and  Uncle 
Ezekiel,"  called  Naomi  who  led  the  way  to  the 
diningroom. 

True  to  his  promise  Hiram  took  his  brother 
up  to  Chehocton  in  a  few  days  where  they  drove 
and  walked  without  din  and  dust.  Naomi  ac- 
companied them  as  also  did  Hiram's  housekeeper. 
They  opened  the  cottage.  The  haunts  of  long 
ago  opened  a  flood  of  memories  upon  the  visiting 
brothers.  Full  of  youthful  vivacity  they  had 
come  to  the  Beech  Woods  with  the  family  to  seek 
their  fortune  but  within  six  years  Ezekeil  had 
returned  to  Connecticut  with  his  father,  content 
to  remain  on  the  old  homestead  farm  and  eke  out 
a  modest  competence  from  its  stony  soil.  There 
he  had  dwelt  ever  since  except  when  he  visited 
his  brother  a  few  years  later,  just  before  the 
brother  moved  to  Onaway.  Chehocton,  then, 
furnished  the  connecting  link  between  the  lives, 
ambitions  and  sympathies  of  the  brothers — a 
field  fertile  with  topics  of  conversation  and  sug- 
gestive of  reminiscences. 

"Things  has  changed  some,  Hi,  in  fifty  odd 
year,"  said  Ezekiel  when  they  drove  around  the 
west  end  of  the  lake  on  their  way  to  the  cottage. 
"Sh'dn't  'a'  knowed  the  place  'f  I'd  dropped  out 
o'  the  clouds.  Quite  a  settlement  now.  They 
seem  to  be  a  kind  er  shif'less  set  o'  farmers,  though, 
things  ain't  slicked  up  as  they  ought  to  be." 

"No,  they've  just  begun  to  economize  a  leetle. 
They've  stripped  the  timber  an'  now  have  to 
fall  back  on  to  their  farms  fur  a  livin'.  Goin' 
to  be  a  great  country,  though,  some  day." 

"Not  if  they  waste  things  's  they  dew  now,  Hi, 
an'  keep  things  so  slipshod  like." 


UNCLE  EZEKIEL'S  VISIT  243 

"Don't  worry,  Zeke.  Guess  a  hunderd  year  'ill 
make  these  hills  look  as  slick's  them  'round  the 
Hook." 

"I  jocks!     'Twon't  be  in  our  day." 

Ezekiel  never  liked  to  feel  that  he  was  the 
under  dog  in  argument  or  otherwise.  The  next 
day  Naomi  rowed  them  along  in  her  boat  near 
the  outlet  shore.  They  were  nearing  the  place 
where  they  began  to  clear  away  the  wilderness 
more  than  a  half  century  before  and  to  make  it 
"to  rejoice  and  blossom  as  the  rose"  when  Hiram 
pointed  to  a  pine  stump  with  a  twinkle  of  merri- 
ment in  his  eyes  and  drolly  asked,  "Do  ye  recollect 
that  'ere  stump,  yender?" 

"Naw!  I  don't  know  nuthin'  'bout  yer  Beech 
Woods  stumps." 

The  elder  brother  chuckled  to  himself  and, 
nudging  the  other  in  the  ribs  with  his  elbow, 
good-naturedly  responded,  "Guess  ye  don't  want 
'o  remember,  Zeke.  I  wouldn't  want  'o  neither 
'f  I's  yew." 

"I  jocks!  Hi,  I  ken  gen'ally  give  'n  account 
o'  myself  most  anywheres  but  I'll  be  darned  if 
I  know  what  yer  drivin'  at  now." 

"Don't  ye  recollect  one  mornin'  jest  when  the 
sun  was  peepin'  'is  red  face  over  them  Beaverkill 
mountains  over  yender  in  York  state,  we  come 
out  frum  breakfast  an'  yew  says  to  me  's  ye 
stepped  up  to  that  'ere  tree,  says  yew,  'Hi,  I 
ken  take  the  bird's  eye  o'  this  'ere  tree  frum  ye'? 
Don't  ye  recollect  it?" 

"Oh,  I  do  recollect  somethin'  about  it.  I  know 
I  had  a  nick  in  the  bit  o'  my  ax." 

"Says  I,  'Zeke,  ye  can't  dew  it;'  an'  ye  didn't 
dew  it,  neither.  I  recollect  it  's  plain  's  if  'twas 


244  A  FAST  GAME 

but  yisterday.  I  laid  my  garibaldi  on  a  yaller 
birch  root  right  over  there  by  that  'ere  big 'rock, 
took  my  ax  an'  the  side  o'  the  tree  yew  had  left 
fur  me,  and,  mebbe,  about  that  time,  the  chips 
didn't  fly.  Yew  was  a  good  chopper,  Zeke,  but 
I  took  the  bird's  eye  frum  ye  that  mornin',  fair 
an'  square.  The  next  day  ye  started  back  East. 
Guess  ye  thought  ye  c'd  tinker  'round  on  the 
ol'  place  ruther  'n  take  yer  chances  in  the  wilderniss 
an'  among  men.  He,  he!  'F  ye  don't  believe 
what  I'm  tellin'  ye  jest  go  up  an'  look  fur  yerself. 
There  on  the  east  side  ye '11  see  the  heart  cut  off 
's  plain  's  day.  'F  I've  looked  at  it  once  I've 
looked  at  it  a  hunderd  times." 

Uncle  Zeke  had  no  desire  to  survey  a  field  of 
one  of  his  defeats  and,  therefore,  remained  com- 
fortably seated  in  the  boat  while  it  passed  the 
epochal  stump  of  his  life  and  sped  on  into  waters 
more  congenial  to  his  memories. 

Naomi  thoroughly  enjoyed  the  brotherly  gibes 
of  these  old  men  and  their  childish  boasts  of  long 
ago.  In  her  more  youthful  imaginations,  she,  too, 
lived  in  the  pioneer  days  of  northeastern  Penn- 
sylvania, she  inhaled  from  the  primaeval  forests 
of  pine  and  hemlock  the  odors  that  mingled  with 
the  fragrance  of  April  fields,  listened  to  the  wise 
words  of  past  and  present  and  wondered  if  the 
former  days  were  better  than  these,  if  the  modern 
improvements  did  improve,  if  the  earlier  simple 
life  was  not  the  real  life  and  if  a  narrow  horizon 
of  living  was  not,  after  all,  the  happiest  life  to 
lead  in  the  world — the  wide,  wide  world. 

Yet  when  she  considered  and  analyzed  the  life 
of  her  grandfather — his  blending  of  three  genera- 
tions in  one,  his  staunch  character,  simplicity, 


UNCLE  EZEKIEL'S  VISIT  245 

his  breadth  of  vision  and  grasp  of  business  and 
spiritual  principles — how  he  had  risen  from  poverty 
to  wealth  and  still  retained  a  sturdy  and  spotless 
manhood;  how  he  had  taken  all  the  modern 
responsibilities  upon  his  shoulders  without  alter- 
ing his  basal  ideas;  and,  then,  contrasted  the 
narrowness  of  his  brother,  his  conceit  and  perverted 
opinions,  she  concluded  that  there  was  no  time 
like  the  new  time,  and  that  the  opportunities  for 
living  the  ideal  Christian  life  never  exceeded  those 
of  the  present. 

Much  as  she  liked  to  ponder  over  the  simplicity 
of  her  grandfather's  earlier  days,  the  duties  and 
pleasures  of  the  present  far  outweighed  them  in 
importance  and  exquisite  consciousness;  much 
as  she  enjoyed  the  country  air — nature's  beauty 
and  restfulness  about  their  country  home — the 
work  in  the  poor  patches  of  the  city,  the  winning 
of  souls  for  her  Master  and  the  carrying  of  the 
Christ  life  into  the  jostling,  human  throng,  even 
if  it  sapped  all  her  nervous  energy  and  wearied 
every  fiber  of  her  being,  gave  her  entire  satis- 
faction and  produced  a  beatific  consciousness 
never  obtained  in  any  other  service  and,  certainly, 
never  obtained  in  idleness. 

The  fortnight  of  Ezekiel  Slocum's  visit  ended 
with  a  very  touching  farewell  between  the  brothers, 
for,  though  the  years  had  dealt  kindly  with  them 
both  and  brought  them  to  old  age  like  a  shock 
of  corn  fully  ripe,  each  knew  that  he  would  see 
his  brother  no  more  in  sad  or  joyous  scenes  of 
earth,  but  their  next  meeting  would  be  where 
neither  had  had  a  hand  in  clearing  the  forest, 
mining  the  coal  or  establishing  a  permanent 
basis  of  finance  and  industry. 


246  A  FAST  GAME 

Ezekiel  went  back  to  his  material  and  mental 
hermitage  to  meditate  on  the  wonders  he  had 
seen  and  relate  the  experiences  he  had  passed 
through;  while  his  brother  returned  to  the  city, 
plunged  into  the  thick  of  the  fight  which  already 
raged,  lent  a  helping  hand,  unbiased  judgment 
and  a  zealous  heart  to  rich  and  poor  alike,  and 
gave  himself  in  service  to  his  fellow  men.  Each 
brother  played  the  game  of  life  in  perfect  content- 
ment. Some  might  say  that  each  played  with 
the  cards  which  nature  had  dealt  out  to  him  but, 
if  every  man  is  master  of  his  own  destiny,  each 
played  with  the  hand  he  had  dealt  to  himself. 


CHAPTER    XVI 

THE    TRAIL    OF    A    STRUGGLE 

"War  is  hell."  A  brother  at  another's  throat 
is  hellish.  A  battle  would  not  cause  half  the 
misery  that  it  does  if  it  affected  only  the  com- 
batants. Like  the  liquor  traffic,  its  greatest 
anguish  lies  in  the  breaking  hearts  of  the  wives 
and  mothers,  weeping  sweethearts  and  sisters, 
naked  and  hungry  innocent  children,  in  devas- 
tated fields  and  forsaken  homes.  It  is  the  same  in 
an  industrial  struggle.  The  innocent  not  only 
suffer  with  the  guilty  but  they  suffer  unjustly, 
and  with  agony  far  more  exquisite.  "No  man 
liveth  unto  himself." 

If  he  do  wrong  somebody  must  pay  the  penalty 
— some  reed  must  be  bruised;  if  he  do  wrong 
intentionally,  he  not  only  wails  in  his  own  con- 
science, but  some  other  heart  bleeds  from  the 
ignominy  and  shame  wilfully  thrust  upon  it. 
Though  the  great  Burdenbearer  and  Consoler 
lightens  our  ioads,  comforts  our  sorrows  and 
soothes  our  wounds  with  the  balm  of  life,  He 
does  not  remove  from  us  the  pain  for 
another's  sin  nor  the  anxiety  for  the  sinner. 
"He  weeps  with  those  who  weep"  and  longs  for 
and  loves  the  wanderer  who  is  the  cause  of  the 
weeping.  Oh!  if  no  trail  of  woe  followed  the 
struggle,  earth's  paths  would  lead  through  song 
247 


248  A  FAST  GAME 

echoing  shades,  be  swept  by  heaven  scented 
winds,  adorned  by  blooming  beauty  and  paved 
with  the  velvet  of  happiness. 

In  proportion  to  the  whole  number  of  the 
inhabitants  in  Onaway,  only  a  few  actually  took 
part  in  the  struggle;  every  one,  however,  felt 
the  trail  of  the  slimy  serpent.  Sometimes  the 
guilty  one  received  his  just  due  but  more  often 
the  innocent  felt  the  poisonous  sting  and  quite 
frequently  those,  who  had  both  contesting  parties 
in  full  sympathy  and  who  strove  to  negotiate 
terms  of  peace  advantageously  to  both,  received 
the  fire  from  both  sides  and  fell  while  conscious  of 
doing  his  best  for  his  fellow  man.  Had  we  no 
hope  of  justice  and  an  equitable  distribution  of 
reward  and  punishment  beyond  this  world, 
courage  would  fail  and  honest  living  would  be 
at  an  end. 

In  the  Diamond  mine  there  labored  a  young 
man.  He  believed  in  exercising  his  right  to  work 
regardless  of  his  associates  who  preferred  to  stand 
out  in  the  suspension.  They  had  persuaded 
and  coaxed  and  dogged  and  threatened  him,  to 
join  the  union  or  quit  work.  He  became  moody, 
discouraged  and  nervously  superstitious  that 
some  dire  calamity  would  come  to  him.  Con- 
scientious consideration  of  his  position  merged 
into  depressive  brooding.  He  soon  imagined 
himself  friendless  and  useless. 

Instead  of  gravitating  toward  his  fellow  man 
for  helpfulness  and  sympathy,  he  shunned  him 
because  he  feared  and  distrusted  him.  The  poor 
fellow  could  not  always  retain  his  mental  balance 
under  so  great  pressure  of  internal  feelings  and 
external  persuasion.  Near  him  daily  were  plenty 


THE  TRAIL  OF  A  STRUGGLE  249 

of  willing  and  ready  souls  to  buoy  him  above  the 
rising  tide  but  no  one  knew  his  condition  and 
no  one  inquired,  for  the  tension  of  the  times 
closed  the  mouth  of  sympathy  and  opened  the 
eyes  of  distrust.  In  a  darkened  and  superstitious 
paganism  such  results  would  not  be  wondered 
at  but  in  a  Christian  land  such  conditions  must 
have  made  the  shadow  of  Calvary  again  hide 
its  folds  in  utter  darkness. 

The  dark  culm  thickened  water  of  the  Lacka- 
wanna  promised  a  soft  bed  and  a  refuge  from  his 
present  tormentors.  Poor  Joe  leaned  over  the 
iron  railing  of  the  bridge  that  spans  that  stream 
and  wondered.  His  mind  whirled.  The  stars 
of  heaven  smiled  down  upon  him  and  the  moon- 
beams shed  their  silvery  sheen  about  him  and 
the  April  south  wind  kissed  his  cheek  and  he 
was  comforted.  But  a  human  foot  struck  the 
planks  of  the  bridge.  Naomi  walked  lightly  for 
her  mission  was  mercy.  Oh!  if  Joe  had  only 
known  but  he  did  not.  Another  human  tormentor 
must  be  on  his  track.  He  could  not  play  the 
game  any  longer.  Good-bye  to  the  shining  moon 
and  the  twinkling  stars  and  the  refreshing  night 
wind.  Joe  saw  nothing  but  the  waiting  water. 

A  slight  shuffle  in  the  middle  of  the  bridge 
answered  the  hurrying  feet  near  the  end,  a  dark 
form  dropped  from  the  iron  girders  and  disap- 
peared in  the  dark  flood,  a  splash  followed  and 
then  silence,  save  for  the  wash  of  waves  along  the 
banks,  the  lapping  of  ripples  in  the  rift  and  the 
soughing  of  the  south  wind  through  the  network 
of  iron  above  Naomi's  head. 

A  half  mile  below  and  a  half  hour  later  the 
dark  form  grated  on  the  edge  of  a  culm  bar  which 


250  A  FAST  GAME 

had  been  washed  there  by  the  recent  flood,  shoved 
up  and  grounded.  The  waters  gradually  receded 
so  that  by  daylight  the  south  wind  again  played 
through  the  tangled  and  wet  locks  and  the  sun 
kissed  away  the  moisture  from  a  sad  white  face. 
Another  soul  had  gone  "where  the  wicked  cease 
from  troubling."  And  who  was  to  blame? 

Tony  Bandelli  had  so  far  recovered  from  his 
recent  wound  that  he  had  returned  to  his  home 
and  lay  sleeping  with  his  wife,  and  his  children 
about  them.  Numerous  black  hand  messages 
had  come  to  him  demanding  money.  He  led  a 
life  of  industry  and  economy,  and,  therefore,  was 
a  shining  mark  for  that  dark  society.  Two  days 
before,  he  had  received  notice  to  be  at  a  certain 
place  where  a  representative  of  the  society  would 
meet  him  and  receive  the  required  sum  or  his 
home  would  be  blown  up  by  dynamite.  Bandelli 
would  not  submit  to  any  such  unjust  demands 
nor  could  he  believe  that  anybody  would  perpetrate 
such  an  inhuman  tragedy,  even  if  he  did  threaten 
to  do  it.  In  the  midst  of  these  trying  straits, 
Tony  held  his  peace  and  slept  soundly  with  a 
clear  conscience. 

He  awoke  but  not  in  his  bed.  The  threat  had 
become  a  reality.  His  eyes  looked  again  on 
the  inside  walls  of  a  hospital  ward.  In  an  ad- 
joining cot  he  recognized  the  long  black  hair  of 
his  wife.  The  awfulness  of  the  crime  slowly 
dawned  upon  his  shattered  senses,  the  truth  at 
last  appeared  to  him  like  indistinct  objects  take 
on  form  and  color  as  one  stands  and  looks  in  a 
darkened  room.  He  had  no  pain  of  conscience 
or  thirt  for  vengeance,  only  poignant  grief.  Two 
days  later,  assisted  by  friendly  arms,  he  stood 


THE  TRAIL  OF  A  STRUGGLE  251 

and  sorrowed  over  a  double  coffin  which  contained 
Mary  and  James — two  children  from  his  own 
loins,  neither  of  them  in  the  teens. 

His  heart  wrung  in  agony  though  not  a  tear 
did  he  shed.  Bullets  and  knives  in  his  flesh  were 
touches  of  kindness  compared  with  the  excruciating 
tortures  through  which  he  was  then  passing. 
But  what  could  the  helpless  man  do?  Only  one 
thing  remained  for  him  to  do  and  he  did  it.  In 
the  spirit  of  humility  and  with  a  lofty  purpose 
he  continued  in  the  way  of  duty  and  of  adherence 
to  righteous  principle.  He  went  back  to  his 
wrecked  home,  repaired  it,  took  his  wife,  who 
had  been  crippled  for  life,  and  the  only  remaining 
child,  and  began  all  over  again.  Could  it  be  in 
the  same  old  way?  No!  There  stood  empty 
chairs  that  could  never  be  filled,  breaks  had  been 
made  which  never  could  be  mended  and  an  aching 
void,  which  never  could  be  supplied,  wrested 
the  sunshine  from  his  life  and  faded  from  the 
cheek  of  his  emaciated  wife  the  pink  that  had 
so  delicately  blushed  under  the  Italian  skies. 

Oscar  Morgan  had  married  a  wife  from  a  well- 
to-do  union  family.  The  arduous  tasks  which 
fell  to  his  lot  in  the  capacities  of  agitator  for  the 
Union  and  accomplice  in  the  black  hand,  kept 
him  much  away  from  home,  led  him  to  drink 
more  than  usual  and,  when  at  home,  made  him 
touchy  and  fault  rinding.  Two  little  children, 
the  older  less  than  two  years  of  age,  worried 
the  patient  mother  almost  to  distraction. 

The  actual  necessaries  of  life  decreased  to 
absolute  want.  She  plead  and  begged  aid  from 
her  husband  for  her  children  and  received  curses 
and  threats.  She  protested,  and  received  only 


252  A  FAST  GAME 

blows  from  a  brutal  husband.  Naomi  learned 
her  condition  and  carried  in  food  for  the  starving 
trio.  Scarcely  had  she  passed  out  of  sight  around 
the  corner  when  Oscar  returned,  hungry,  intoxi- 
cated and  in  a  rage.  The  provisions  had  not  yet 
been  put  away  in  the  pantry.  The  three  were 
enjoying  the  nourishing  viands.  The  father  de- 
voured the  most  of  the  good  things  and  lay  down 
to  sleep  off  his  wrath  and  poisonous  potion. 

He  awoke  later  in  the  day  and  demanded  more, 
but  was  refused.  He  cursed  the  mother  of  his 
children  and  searched  until  he  found  the  remnant 
of  the  food.  This  he  ate  like  a  ravenous  beast 
and  departed  to  his  labors  of  the  devil.  A  day 
passed  without  more  food  for  the  bairns  save 
what  an  infant  could  draw  from  a  starving  breast. 
Naomi  came  again.  She  counseled  secrecy  and 
hiding  of  the  victuals.  The  wife  did  as  directed. 

That  morning,  for  the  husband  did  most  of 
his  work  during  the  night  time  then,  Oscar  came 
home  in  better  humor  but  he  brought  no  food 
except  a  loaf  of  bread.  Heretofore,  he  had 
been  a  kind  father  and  husband  and  a  good 
provider  for  his  family,  but  since  the  suspension 
he  had  changed  from  a  man  to  a  fiend.  The 
loaf  was  little  among  so  many,  especially,  when 
the  one  who  brought  it  ate  the  most  of  it  himself. 

After  the  meal,  eaten  in  comparative  silence, 
Morgan  went  to  bed.  His  wife  intimated  that 
she  would  be  glad  when  he  could  be  home  nights 
and  be  as  he  used  to  be.  The  words  were  like 
a  spark  to  powder.  He  went  to  sleep  gritting 
his  teeth.  Darkness  had  fallen  when  he  awoke. 
He  demanded  food,  protesting  that  Naomi  had 
been  there  again  and  that  he  was  as  much  entitled 


THE  TRAIL  OF  A  STRUGGLE  253 

to  his  share  as  any  one  of  the  family;  he  was  not 
to  blame  for  the  suspension  and  the  poverty  which 
stared  them  in  the  face  like  a  grinning  skeleton. 
The  devilish  operators  were  to  blame  for  their 
pinched  circumstances. 

His  wife  insisted  that  there  was  nothing  in  the 
house  for  him  to  eat,  that  they  were  all  starving 
together.  She  deceived  and  finally  told  a  blank 
falsehood  for  the  sake  of  feeding  her  offspring, 
yet,  under  his  terrific  cross  examination  and 
persistent  nagging,  he  drew  enough  from  her  to 
satisfy  him  that  there  was  bread  in  the  house. 
This  incensed  him  all  the  more.  His  anger  knew 
no  bounds.  Seizing  her  by  the  throat  he  hurled 
her  through  the  door  and  into  the  night. 

She  dropped  on  her  knees  and  begged  that  she 
might  take  her  children  with  her  but  he  kicked 
her  from  the  doorstep  for  suggesting  such  a  thing. 
A  light  rain  was  falling  and,  while  the  drops 
mingled  with  her  tears,  she  plead  for  the  nurseling 
to  keep  her  company.  The  door  slammed  in 
her  face  in  answer  to  her  request.  A  few  minutes 
later  she  gently  knocked  and  slowly  pushed  open 
the  door,  pleading  for  just  a  kiss  from  the  little 
ones  who  then  lay  asleep  on  a  bed  in  plain  sight 
of  the  suffering  mother.  Oscar  jerked  the  door 
from  her  grasp.  The  suddenness  and  violence 
of  the  shock  sprawled  her  at  full  length  across  the 
threshold  of  her  own  home.  Not  a  word  was 
spoken,  only  the  dull  sound  of  a  heavy  shoe 
beating  against  a  human  body,  a  slow  slipping 
and  a  dull  thud,  the  slam  of  a  door  and  silence 
and  dark  and  damp. 

The  friendly  rain  brought  the  unconscious 
woman  to  herself  again.  She  slowly  rose  from 


254  A  FAST  GAME 

the  ground,  staggered  into  the  street  and  tottered 
on  toward  the  home  of  a  sister.  The  woman 
heard  the  story  and  trembled  with  fear  lest,  if 
she  harbored  her  own  sister  under  the  circum- 
stances, vengeance  would  be  meted  out  to  her 
from  an  irate  union  husband.  She  hesitated 
and  wept  and  finally  told  Mrs.  Morgan  that  she 
must  go;  much  as  she  loved  her,  children  and 
home  must  take  first  place  and  anything  that 
might  bring  danger  or  suffering  to  them  must  be 
avoided.  The  homeless  and  aching  woman  rose 
with  a  groan,  opened  the  door  softly  and  went 
out  into  the  night.  And,  oh,  how  dark  it  was! 

At  the  gate  of  another  sister  she  fared  no  better. 
What  door  of  mercy  would  open  to  such  a  for- 
lorn specimen  of  womanhood?  Many,  if  they 
had  only  known.  A  noble  soul  often  feels  the 
need  of  the  vision  of  an  archangel  to  recognize 
the  subjects  of  actual  need  and  locate  them  that 
he  may  be  able,  then  and  there,  to  administer 
to  their  several  and  various  needs.  Mrs.  Morgan 
wandered  aimlessly  down  the  street  and  into  the 
suburbs  of  the  city.  Thoughtlessly  she  had 
approached  the  cemetery  and  stood  before  its 
big  iron  gates.  Yes,  her  fathel  and  mother, 
who  slept  up  on  the  hillside,  wourd  not  turn  her 
from  their  tenement  of  dust. 

Their  home  was  small  but  its  shelter  would  be 
a  paradise  to  her  present  quarters.  Thither  she 
must  go.  She  meandered  through  the  avenues, 
berween  monuments  and  tombstones  to  a  distant 
corner  where  two  mounds  lay  side  by  side.  Be- 
tween them  she  fell  on  her  knees  and  wailed  out 
her  woe  to  parental  ears  that  had  ceased  hearing 
earthly  sounds  forever.  Yet  no  voice  told  her 


THE  TRAIL  OF  A  STRUGGLE  255 

to  depart,  no  one  turned  a  deaf  ear.  She  received 
comfort.  From  her  knees  she  dropped  to  her 
face  with  her  right  hand  over  the  grave  of  her 
mother  and  prayed  in  a  subdued  moan: 

"Oh,  mother!  You  know  how  ye  love  yer 
babies.  Me  heart  do  be  breakin',  me  heart  do 
be  broke!  Mother,  I'll  die,  I'll  die!  An'  can  I 
come  to  you,  to  you  in  yer  narrow  bed,  an', 
mother,  won't  ye  hold  me  in  yer  arms  again? 
Oh,  mother!  I  want  to  come  to  you.  Let  me 
come!  Take  me  hand!  Ye  won't  turn  me  out  o' 
doors,  will  ye,  mother? — Oh,  God!  Take  me  to 
mother, — mother — God — moth-er — eh — eh — eh — 
eh,  eh,  eh,  h-h-h-h!" 

Her  head  sunk  low  into  her  arm  and  the  cold 
rain  beat  pitilessly  on  her  battered  and  aching 
body  when  the  whirling  mind  and  murmuring 
lips  ceased  their  activity.  A  long  drawn  sob 
trailed  into  a  sigh  of  relief,  and  the  weary  soul  slept 
and  dreamed  of  home  and  mother. 

Bright  and  early  the  next  morning  Naomi  was 
returning  home  from  watching  at  the  bedside  of 
Lawrence  Boland  who  had  been  injured  by  a  stray 
stone  hurled  by  a  member  of  the  union.  While 
she  hurried  down  one  of  the  back  streets  which 
overlooked  the  cemetery,  she  noticed  a  peculiar 
object  among  the  graves.  Her  curiosity  and  com- 
passion led  her  to  investigate.  Picking  her  way 
through  the  wet  grass  and  shrubs  and  mud,  she 
soon  stood  in  utter  astonishment  and  pity  and 
looked  down  into  the  face  of  the  yet  sleeping 
Mrs.  Morgan — a  human  being  in  a  Christian  city, 
sleeping  on  her  mother's  grave  through  an  April 
night  of  rain! 

She  hailed  a  passer-by  and  requested  him  to 


256  A  FAST  GAME 

summon  a  cab.  In  the  meanwhile,  she  gently 
awoke  the  unconsious  form,  smoothed  out  the 
dripping  long  hair  and  wrung  the  water  from  the 
saturated  clothing.  Within  a  half  hour  Mrs. 
Morgan  lay  comfortably  under  Naomi's  own  roof 
and  her  brother-in-law  administering  to  her  physi- 
cal needs.  Evan  was  of  different  stuff  than  his 
brother,  Oscar,  and  he  did  not  hesitate  to  express 
himself  on  the  subject  when  he  and  Naomi  with- 
drew to  hold  consultation  in  the  adjoining  room. 
Dr.  Morgan  had  not  been  alone  with  Naomi  since 
he  had  asked  her  hand  in  marriage. 

It  is  natural,  therefore,  that  he  should  hesitate 
in  his  speech  and  stammer  somewhat  when  they 
met  face  to  face.  But  he  choked  down  his  personal 
feelings  for  the  more  important  business  in  hand. 
They  concluded  that  he  would  go  at  once  and 
look  after  the  children  and  bring  them  to  the 
mother,  if  they  were  still  alive.  He  did  so  and 
the  two  babes  soon  nestled  NI  the  gentle  embrace 
of  a  nurse — the  mother  being  too  weak  to  care 
for  them  at  all. 

But  there  were  others  for  whom  Naomi  must 
lend  a  helping  hand  and  a  sympathetic  heart.  The 
trail  of  the  struggle  had  just  begun  to  manifest 
itself  in  its  wide  spread  ravages. 

James  Ransom  had  begun  his  boyhood  work 
like  his  brothers  and  his  father  but  soon  wearied 
of  the  mines  and  everything  connected  with 
them.  He  left  his  mule  driving  and  prepared 
for  college.  Even  while  he  worked  in  the  mines 
he  attended  night  school.  His  tastes  contrasted 
strongly  with  those  of  John,  Jr.,  and  Frank.  They 
absorbed  everything  in  the  mining  line  that 
would  turn  them  a  penny  while  James  absorbed 


THE  TRAIL  OF  A  STRUGGLE  257 

everything  that  would  broaden  his  conception  of 
life  and  increase  his  usefulness  to  his  fellow  men. 

Though  dubbed  the  black  sheep  of  the  family 
by  his  younger  and  older  brothers,  he  gracefully 
received  the  dubbing  without  a  word  and  kept 
pegging  away  at  his  own  gait  and  in  his  own  way. 
When  they  received  good  salaries  and  dressed 
well,  he  spent  a  little  more  than  he  could  accumu- 
late and  wore  rather  seedy  clothing  in  order  to 
attend  school.  The  people  in  the  city,  however, 
pronounced  him  the  only  white  sheep  of  the 
whole  flock. 

At  the  age  of  twenty-two  James  stood  penniless 
with  a  college  course  behind  and  a  future  to  make; 
now,  at  the  age  of  twenty-six,  he  figured  as  one 
of  the  brightest  members  of  the  local  bar  with  a 
reputation  for  wise  counsel,  for  accurate  legal 
knowledge,  for  persistency  and  devotion  on 
the  side  of  right  and  with  an  annual  competence 
greater  than  all  the  rest  of  the  Ransom  family 
combined.  The  difficulties  which  had  arisen 
between  The  Black  Diamond  Company  and  the 
Ransoms  would  naturally  lead  one  to  think  that 
the  legal  supervision  of  that  wise  company  would 
never  be  intrusted  to  so  young  a  member  of  the 
bar,  much  less  the  son  and  brother  of  two  important 
employes  in  the  mines,  who  had  so  recently  been 
dismissed  in  disgrace  from  their  service. 

But  it  was  not  so.  He  had  been  their  legal 
authority  for  more  than  a  year,  or  since  his  law 
partner,  ex-judge  Mumford,  their  long  standing 
attorney,  had  died,  and  James  had  hung  out  his 
shingle  on  his  own  hook.  Truly,  the  firm  had 
kept  a  keen  lookout  for  betrayal  or  graft  but  had 
observed  no  signs  of  it;  on  the  contrary,  James 


258  A  FAST  GAME 

personally  deplored  the  penurious  dishonesty  of 
his  family  and  frankly  declared  that,  if  his  own 
kith  and  kin  were  guilty  before  the  law,  he  would 
prosecute  their  case  as  diligently  and  severely  as 
he  would  a  case  against  any  criminal.  Of  course, 
that  statement  stood  on  their  mental  docket  as 
a  case  yet  to  be  tried,  or,  to  say  the  least,  taken 
with  a  grain  of  salt.  Nevertheless,  the  company 
had  confidence  in  the  man,  both  as  to  ability 
and  principle,  and  employed  him  as  their  sole 
attorney  and  counselor-at-law. 

The  Black  Diamond  Company's  business  had 
taken  much  of  James  Morgan's  time  of  late  on 
account  of  the  troubles  between  the  mine  em- 
ployes and  the  union  men.  Arrests  occurred 
almost  daily.  Cases  of  attempted  incendiarism 
and  murder,  of  trespass  and  assault,  but  par- 
tially filled  the  list  of  the  cases  to  be  presented 
before  the  coming  court.  He  kept  daily  in  com- 
munication with  his  clients  and  wrought  up  to 
the  tension  of  nervous  anxiety.  In  the  midst 
of  these  thrilling  complications  he  received  a 
letter  from  the  Black  Hand  to  the  effect  that, 
unless  he  deposited  a  thousand  dollars  in  a  cer- 
tain place  named,  and  refused  to  be  employed 
by  The  Black  Diamond  Company,  his  home 
would  be  blown  up  with  dynamite. 

He  immediately  laid  the  case  before  his  clients. 
They  offered  to  release  from  present  duties  and 
even  went  so  far  as  to  offer  him  the  thousand 
dollars  to  pay  the  demand  of  the  fiends.  Thor- 
oughly aroused  over  the  matter  he  thanked  his 
clients  for  their  confidence  and  consideration 
but  stoutly  declared  that  he  would  do  nothing 
of  the  kind  to  favor  the  hellish  work  of  the  hellish 


THE  TRAIL  OF  A  STRUGGLE  259 

society,  and,  as  to  their  blowing  up,  why,  he 
simply  bid  defiance  to  such  a  dastardly  deed. 
Learning  the  will  of  their  attorney  The  Black 
Diamond  Company  approved  of  his  method  of 
procedure  and  further  assured  him  of  their  con- 
fidence and  co-operation.  The  lawyer  and  his 
clients  parted  with  mutual  trust  and  resolution. 

Mrs.  Ransom — previous  to  her  marriage,  Anna 
Morgan — was  in  a  delicate  condition.  James 
kept  all  thrilling  news  from  her,  as  far  as  possible, 
and  retained  a  nurse  of  mental  sunshine  con- 
stantly with  her.  She  had  not  suspicioned  the 
threats  concerning  her  husband  until  one  day, 
when  the  postman  was  late,  a  red  hand  message 
fell  into  her  hand.  The  import  of  the  letter  was, 
that  the  steps  of  the  attorney  were  known  by 
the  red  handed  fiends,  and  that,  did  he  not 
withdraw  his  services  from  The  Black  Diamond 
Company  or  deposit  five  hundred  dollars  in  a 
certain  place  at  a  given  time,  his  life  would  be 
in  danger. 

There  was  no  date  in  the  letter  but  the  stated 
time  of  the  meeting  had  already  passed,  leading 
one  to  suppose  that  the  letter  had  been  delayed 
in  delivery.  Mr.  Ransom  had  been  detained 
already  beyond  his  usual  returning  hour,  nor 
had  he  been  home  to  lunch  according  to  custom. 
The  latter  would  have  caused  no  anxiety  what- 
ever on  ordinary  occasions,  for  he  often,  under 
pressure  of  business,  lunched  down  town,  but 
under  the  circumstances  the  suspense  of  waiting 
became  simply  unbearable. 

Knowing  the  source  of  the  black  and  the  red 
hand  messages  one  can  easily  divine  that  the 
prime  motive  of  the  senders  lay  in  their  desire 


260  A  FAST  GAME 

for  money  and  not  that  they  intended  to  take  his 
life  or  destroy  his  property.  Jealousy  of  a  brother 
and  a  brother-in-law,  incited  by  his  prosperity 
and  their  greed  for  lucre,  stimulated  them  to 
dupe  him  if  possible  with  their  many  other  vic- 
tims. These  acts  on  the  part  of  the  secret  organ- 
ization but  faintly  illustrate  the  selfish  motives 
and  thoughtless  methods  the  player  uses,  and 
the  intricate  complexity  and  the  fatal  termina- 
tion of  the  play,  in  the  all-absorbing  and  all- 
alluring  game  of  life. 

Puerperal  convulsions  seized  Mrs.  Ransom. 
The  nurse  strove  to  deflect  her  mind  from  the 
cruel  threat  made  upon  her  husband  and  to 
convince  her  that  his  increase  of  work  delayed  his 
coming.  But  no  comfort  came  to  the  sufferer. 
Her  brother,  Dr.  Morgan,  was  summoned  immed- 
iately whence  he  had  hurried  from  the  presence 
of  his  sister-in-law  and  Naomi  who  followed  a 
few  minutes  later.  They  also  phoned  for  Mr. 
Ransom  but  he  could  no  where  be  found.  During 
moments  of  consciousness  and  brief  intervals 
from  the  most  excrutiating  pains  she  called  for 
her  husband. 

But  he  did  not  come.  Dr.  Morgan  called  other 
medical  assistance,  the  best  in  the  city,  but  the 
dread  disorder  could  not  be  checked  in  the  least. 
Two  hours  passed.  Despite  the  best  medical 
skill  Naomi  soon  closed  the  eyes  of  Anna  Morgan 
Ransom  and  another  wail  in  the  trail  of  the  strug- 
gle went  up  from  a  bedside  surrounded  by  physi- 
cians and  nurses  and  friends.  One  by  one,  the 
occupants  of  the  bedchamber  tiptoed  from  the 
room  as  if  afraid  of  disturbing  the  dead.  Silence 
brooded  save,  now  and  then,  a  hushed  sob  quavered 


THE  TRAIL  OF  A  STRUGGLE  261 

through  the  house  or  a  door  opened  and  closed 
with  a  muffled  thud  or  a  woman's  garments 
swished  almost  noiselessly  from  room  to  room. 

Fifty  minutes  after  Anna's  immortal  spirit 
bade  adieu  to  its  mortal  abiding  place  James 
Ransom  alighted  from  a  passing  car  and  sprang 
joyfully  up  the  steps  of  his  residence  with  his 
arms  full  of  fruits  and  delicacies  for  the  queen 
of  his  life.  The  door  opened  gently  before  him 
and  the  vigorous  young  man  met  Naomi  in  the 
hall.  The  expression  of  her  face  prefigured  bad 
news.  He  stood  speechless.  She  could  say  noth- 
ing. Taking  the  dainties  from  his  arms  and  plac- 
ing them  on  the  table,  she  led  him  up  the  stairway 
and  into  the  silent  chamber.  A  quivering  groan 
vibrated  through  the  awful  solitude  for  an  instant 
"and  all  was  stiller  than  before."  Tearless  and 
helpless  and  almost  lifeless  James  kneeled  by  the 
side  of  his  wife  who  lay  as  white  and  as  pure  and 
as  cold  as  a  snow  drift  and  on  her  right  arm  their 
first  born  son  as  beautiful  as  a  lily  and  as  cold  as 
death. 

The  trail  of  a  struggle  is  a  trail  of  tears;  the 
moan  of  a  warring  wind,  whether  industrial  or 
internecine,  is  a  wail  of  woe.  The  musical  instru- 
ment that  is  the  most  responsive  to  touch,  the 
most  delicate  of  construction,  richest  in  tone  and 
sweetest  in  harmony,  is  the  most  sensitive  to 
discord;  the  human  soul  that  is  the  broadest 
in  character,  most  refined  in  tastes  and  keenest 
to  pleasure,  is  the  most  exquisitely  susceptible 
to  pain.  The  rarer  the  flower  the  more  is  the 
regret  that  it  be  plucked;  the  happier  the  home 
the  more  is  the  pity  that  its  felicity  be  marred. 

The  brighter  the  light,  the  darker  the  shadow; 


262  A  FAST  GAME 

the  clearer  the  skies,  the  more  noticeable  the 
cloud.  Is  there  no  balm  to  annoint  our  human 
bruises?  Is  there  no  light  to  show  the  direction? 
Is  there  no  hand  to  lead  the  way  but  a  black  hand 
or  a  red  hand  which  leaves  in  its  wake  a  trail  of 
tears?  Yes,  Calvary.  And  yet,  despite  the 
beauty  in  blood,  the  power  in  purity,  the  loyalty 
in  love,  and  the  salvation  in  simplicity,  all  of 
which  flow  from  the  red  cross  on  the  holy  hill, 
some  of  us  dip  our  hands  the  deeper  into  the 
black  pots  of  vice,  plunge  them  into  the  red 
pools  of  human  anguish'  and,  drawing  them 
dripping  to  the  gambling  table,  stake  our  chances 
of  immortal  life  over  against  the  innocency  of 
childhood,  the  purity  of  motherhood,  the  no- 
bility of  manhood,  the  sacredness  of  brotherhood 
and  the  solicitude  of  a  divine  fatherhood,  and, 
without  a  blush,  play  the  game. 


CHAPTER    XVII 

CRIMSON-EBONY 

% 

Crimson-ebony  is  neither  a  color  of  nature  nor 
the  color  mixed  by  the  divine  artist.  The  studio 
of  the  good,  the  beautiful  and  the  true,  contains 
no  such  stain.  In  fact,  it  is  an  unearthly  dye, 
compounded  by  the  puny  imps  of  the  evil  one  and 
smeared  by  the  same  hands  under  the  cover  of 
darkness.  Its  most  conspicuous  daubs  are  boldly 
outlined  against  the  sunlit  skies  of  refinement  and 
righteousness.  The  peculiarity  of  the  stuff  lies 
in  its  dual  nature  to  produce  red  or  black,  ac- 
cording to  the  caprice  of  the  user.  The  Anthra- 
cite saloon  represents  the  nefarious  crucible  in 
which  this  diabolical  decoction  seethes;  its  patrons, 
some  of  those  who  brew  the  malignant  dyestuff 
and  who  seethe  it  in  the  crucible,  God  or  man 
knows  not  why,  unless  it  be  to  dance  while  the 
devil  pats  and  laughs. 

"Something  must  be  done,  boys,  to  get  more 
spondulics,"  said  Ed  Slocum  while  he  sat  at  the 
table  in  the  dark  chamber  of  The  Anthracite 
and  held  a  glass  of  Green  Valley  Rye  in  his  hand. 
"We  have  enough  of  the  lucre  on  hand  to  run  us 
a  spell  yet,  but  while  everything  is  red  hot  as  it  is 
now,  we  ought  to  gather  a  few  shekels  for  a  rainy 
day." 

263 


264  A  FAST  GAME 

He  swallowed  the  potion  at  one  gulp,  banged 
the  glass  upon  the  table  and  smacked  his  lips. 
His  accomplices  completed  the  circle  of  the  table 
and  imitated  their  chief.  Dick  and  Oscar  Morgan 
were  there,  John  Ransom,  Jr.,  Curley,  Mike  Ruhlin 
and  one  or  two  others.  The  transaction  of  im- 
portant business  had  made  possible  a  meeting  of 
the  majority  of  the  members  of  the  crimson-ebony 
society. 

"Two  things  must  be  done,"  went  on  their 
leader.  "First,  that  skunk  of  a  Tom  Boland  and 
Jim  Ransom  must  be  got  out  of  the  employ  of 
The  Black  Diamond  Company  at  all  hazards;  and 
second,  that  company  must  shut  down.  These 
are  our  pretences  and,  of  course,  the  alternative 
in  either  case  will  be  a  fat  sum  of  money.  We  have 
tried  the  proper  colors  on  them  already  and  slight 
threats  but  nothing  is  doing  for  us  yet.  Now, 
I  propose  more  stringent  measures.  We  %vill 
try  the  red  hand  racket  on  Jim  and  see  how  that 
will  work." 

What  a  measure  to  propose  anyway!  As 
though,  if  crimson-ebony  would  not  kill,  ebony- 
red  would! 

"We  might  just  as  well  whistle  as  to  monkey 
with  granddad  any  more.  He's  more  stubborn 
than  any  mule  he  has  in  the  mines,  and  uncle 
Hen  is  a  close  second.  If  we  can  muzzle  them 
some  way  I  think  we  can  work  the  old  man  all 
right.  As  to  Tom,  why — " 

Everyone  about  the  table  knew  what  that  silent 
termination  to  the  chief's  sentence  meant  and  a 
sort  of  grunt  of  approval  went  round. 

"I  wish  I  knew  where  the  sneaking  devil  is. 
Does  anyone  know?" 


CRIMSON-EBONY  265 

An  ominous  silence  preceded  a  circling  grunt  of 
negation. 

"You  are  cognizant  of  the  fact,  Mr.  Slocum, 
that  your  uncle  is  acting  in  the  capacity  of  super- 
intendent in  my  former  position,  are  you  not?" 
inquired  John,  Jr. 

"No,  I  did  not  know  it,"  answered  Ed. 

"An"  he  prowls  'round  the  mine  a  hull  lot, 
night  an'  day,"  put  in  Curley. 

"We'll  try  a  red  letter  on  dad  alone  and  see  if 
that  will  fetch  him  to  terms." 

He  minutely  informed  John,  Jr.,  the  scribe, 
what  must  be  written  in  the  mentioned  letter, 
then,  turning  toward  the  others,  continued  in  a 
voice  audible  to  all,  "But  Tom  is  the  puzzler. 
All  keep  a  sharp  lookout  for  him.  We  meet  again 
next  Friday  night  and  if  these  schemes  do  not 
work  we'll  plan  some  others  that  will.  One 
more  bumper,  boys,  and  we  are  adjourned." 

The  bumper  went  round,  the  glasses  rang  to- 
gether, feet  and  chairs  shuffled  and  scraped  and 
the  company  rose  from  the  table  and,  one  by 
one,  left  the  room  through  the  several  different 
doors  and  halls  to  meet  a  little  later  in  the  bar- 
room where  the  stench  of  "choice  wines  and 
liquors"  diffused  itself  through  every  cubic  inch 
of  the  atmosphere.  It  was  the  same  old  field  and 
the  same  old  game  and  the  same  old  players, 
playing  in  the  same  old  way. 

No  new  goods  adorned  the  show  cases  or  lay 
displayed  before  the  purchaser,  only  a  few  new 
brands  and  trade-marks  on  the  same  old  stuff. 
There  were  no  cut  prices.  It  was  always  bargain 
day  at  the  bar,  the  bargain  counter,  where  every 
buyer  received  more  than  he  bargained  for,  yet, 


266  A  FAST  GAME 

duped  and  duped,  again  and  again,  the  customers 
filed  in  day  after  day  and  night  after  night  in  a 
ceaseless  line,  and  went  out  to  return  and  be 
duped  again. 

Friday  night  came  and  the  crimson-ebony 
society,  according  to  appointment,  met  to  do 
business.  The  principals  were  there,  the  grog 
was  there  and  the  colors  were  there,  too.  The 
chairman  rapped  his  empty  glass  on  the  table 
and  the  session  opened.  There  were  two  con- 
science smitten  members  at  the  session;  John,  Jr., 
who  felt,  if  it  be  possible  for  so  seared  a  soul  to 
feel,  his  brother's  sore  trial  at  the  loss  of  his  wife, 
and  Oscar  who  deplored  the  loss  of  a  sister  on 
account  of  their  red  handed  business — for  since 
the  last  session,  some  of  the  events  of  the  last 
chapter  had  taken  place. 

The  ejection  of  his  wife  by  the  latter  had  flurried 
the  domestic  tranquility  somewhat,  but  that 
was  of  minor  importance,  even  though  he  re- 
ceived cutting  banter  and  ridicule  from  his  asso- 
ciates. All  these  events  passed  through  the  mind 
of  Ed  Slocum  without  phasing  his  even  temper 
or  without  producing  a  ripple  on  his  externality. 
Ed's  Christian  environment  and  rearing,  mingled 
voluntarily  with  continual  dabbling  in  sin,  had 
steeled  his  conscience  to  the  flexibility  and  strength 
of  a  Damascus  blade,  to  that  extent,  in  fact, 
that  it  is  doubtful  if  anything  under  heaven  could 
force  tears  from  his  eyes  or  cast  a  shadow  of  real 
sorrow  over  his  face. 

"Well,  what  luck,  boys?"  spoke  the  sachem 
after  the  liquid  preliminaries  had  passed. 

"Nit!"  snarled  Curley. 


CRIMSON-EBONY  267 

"Per  adventure,  relative  to  the  unexpected 
circumstances  connected  with  the  misfortune  of 
my  brother,  James,"  answered  John,  Jr.,  "wisdom 
would  declare  a  cessation  of  pressure  in  that 
direction,  though  I  must  frankly  confess  that  he 
is  financially  able  to  remunerate  us  according  to 
our  meager  demands." 

"The  worst  is  over,"  cringed  Oscar,  "an*  we 
might  's  well  put  the  screws  to  'im  now  in  dead 
earnest.  If  I  was  a  corporation  lawyer  rakin' 
in  me  thousands  a  year  a  doin'  nothin',  I'd  be 
willin'  to  pony  up  to  honest  fellows  what  have  to 
wark  fur  a  livin'.  I  say,  shove  'im.  He's  got 
nothin'  to  do  with  'is  money  now." 

"Perhaps  you  are  not  so  conversant  with  the 
character  of  my  brother,  James,  as  I  am,"  put  in 
John,  Jr.  "Should  we  concentrate  excessive 
persuasion  during  his  present  period  of  lamenta- 
tion, consequences  will  be  the  opposite  from 
what  we  anticipate." 

"We  might  know  that."  muttered  Oscar,  "he's 
a  stubborn  Englishman." 

"Shuer,  it's  the  son  o'  Wales  what  gives  trooble 
the  go-by,"  broke  in  Mike.  "But  who  aver 
heered  ave  a  Welchman  what  didn't  shtick  to 
'is  wallet  schtrings  loike  an  Irishman  to  a  peraty  ?" 

"We  ain't  here  tonight  to  listen  to  no  bull- 
headed  wit  frum  a  son  of  Erin,"  retorted  Oscar 
who  was  nettled  by  the  sly  insinuation  of  one  of 
his  confederates. 

"An'  it's  wit  what  'ill  git  the  divil  out  ave 
tight  scrapes  whin  spunk,  rason  an'  sintiment 
fail." 

"We'll  waive  the  case  of  Jim  for  the  present 
and  take  up  other  family  affairs,"  interrupted 


268  A  FAST  GAME 

the  chairman  with  a  chilly  sense  of  humor.  "What 
about  the  Slocums?" 

"No  answer  from  them  in  any  way,"  replied 
John,  Jr.  "The  old  gentleman  has  been  out  of 
the  city  for  several  days  which  fact  has  necessitated 
the  transaction  of  all  the  business  by  the  sons. 
Henry  spends  most  of  his  time  in  and  around  the 
mine  but  is  in  daily  communication  with  the 
office.  The  only  feasible  tactic  to  pursue  is  to 
separate  them  in  some  manner  which  separation 
might  operate  as  a  stimulus  to  Benjamin  to  re- 
imburse our  treasury,  in  order  also,  to  relieve 
his  own  anxiety  relative  to  his  brother." 

"I  have  the  schame,"  quickly  responded  Ruhlin, 
"me  an'  Curley'll  tind  to  the  boss's  hash,  since 
our  frind,  the  wapin'  an'  chicken-harted  Welchman, 
shows  the  white  fither." 

The  Welchman  frowned  as  he  drained  his 
mug  of  beer  and  was  about  to  return  the  taunt 
when  the  leader  asked, 

"What  is  your  plan,  Ruhlin?" 

"Evidently  it  is  not  the  design  of  this  body  to 
go  on  record  as  plotting  or  implicating  itself  in 
any  measure  which  would  take  human  life," 
broke  in  Ransom  as  he  glanced  at  their  chairman. 

Two  reasons  for  speaking  were  uppermost  in 
his  thought;  first,  that  he  might  put  on  his  guard 
anyone  in  the  secret  presence,  for  they  had  the 
person  of  their  chief's  uncle  under  consideration; 
and  second,  should  anyone  imply  in  his  remarks 
the  final  disposal  of  Henry  Slocum,  it  would  not 
be  the  head  of  John  Ransom,  Jr.,  to  receive  the 
wrath  of  the  leader.  Our  candid  opinion  is  that 
no  one  of  the  company  present  had  more  personal 
grudges  against  the  person  in  question,  and  would 


CRIMSON-EBONY  269 

secretly  chuckle  to  get  even  with  him,  than  the 
pretending  advocate  of  lenient  measures. 

"Don't  be  after  worrin'  aboot  Mr.  Slocum's 
relation,  me  Anglish  frind,"  blurted  out  Mike. 
"Me  an'  Curley'll  tind  to  him." 

"Never  fear,  fellows,  you  know  that  my  uncle 
inherits  half  the  property  of  my  granddad,  and 
he  has  no  children." 

"Jest  yez  loan  me  a  bit  ave  yer  toime  an'  ye'll 
hear  somethin'  drap.  It's  meself  what's  tellin' 
ave  yez  that  Oi  have  the  schame." 

"Well,  Mike,  go  on  with  your  scheme,"  ruled 
the  chairman. 

"Oi'm  sick  o'  the  union  an'  Oi'm  goin'  to  with- 
draw me  support,  an'  Curley,  too,  bedad!  We'll 
be  after  nailin'  a  job  in  the  Di'mon'  mine  an' 
the  schame  do  be  asey.  Curley  knowns  that  the 
boss  pays  next  wake  an'  that  he  do  pay  in  the 
mine.  On  the  day  ave  the  pay  it  won't  contami- 
nate me  Irish  blud  to  enherit  a  small  dowry  ave 
the  auld  Slocum  astate  inny  more  'n  't  will  the 
blud  ave  our  young  boss  here  be  the  table,  an' 
Oi'm  not  the  lad  to  hisitate  to  hilp  the  schame, 
along,  along." 

The  scheme  at  once  appeared  plausible  to  the 
entire  company  and  was  heartily  approved.  No 
one  had  been  deputized  to  commit  murder  or 
rob,  though  every  member  of  the  organization 
at  the  table,  knowing  the  desperate  character 
of  Curley  and  his  accomplice,  thoroughly  under- 
stood the  implication  of  Mike's  words,  and  yet, 
if  the  execution  of  the  plot  proved  a  failure  and 
its  active  principals  caught,  no  legal  proof  could 
be  brought  against  the  action  of  the  crimson- 
ebony  society.  The  bottle  went  round  the  table 


270  A  FAST  GAME 

again  to  denote  that  the  subject  in  hand  had  been 
disposed  of  and  that  another  would  be  brought 
up  before  the  council. 

''And  how  about  Boland,"  quoth  Ed. 

"An"  do  this  be  the  same  Tom  Bolan',  the  son 
ave  the  Irishman  what  was  kilt  in  the  mine  a 
bit  ago  an'  what  lives  up  in  Maffit's  patch  forninst 
the  hill?" 

"He  is  the  same,"  answered  the  chairman. 

"Shuer,  an'  the  case  do  be  dead  asey,  thin.  Yez 
do  know  that  birds  ave  a  fither  flock  togither  an' 
a  bit  o'  brogue  between  us  will  make  f rinds." 

"But  he  is  not  at  home,"  answered  Ed. 

"Indade!  an'  Oi  see  him  but  yesternight  snakin' 
doon  Murphy's  alley  loike  a  cur  what  had  ben 
after  stalin'  his  master's  shape." 

The  company  received  this  information  with 
noticeable  satisfaction  and  the  question  on  every- 
one's tongue  was  asked  by  their  sachem. 

"Are  you  sure  that  it  was  he?" 

"Shuer?  Do  yez  think  me  so  blind  's  a  bat 
not  to  see  an  Irishman  in  an  alley?" 

"Mike  could  smell  'is  breath  o'  taters,"  inter- 
rupted Curley  who  partially  aroused  from  a 
maudlin  stupor  into  which  his  frequent  pota- 
tions were  rapidly  leading  him. 

"Was  it  light  or  dark,  Mike,  when  you  saw  him?" 
asked  Ed. 

"Faith,  an'  it  was  nather  light  ner  dark,  so  it 
wasn't." 

"Was  he  drunk  or  sober?" 

"Bedad,  an'  Oi  didn't  inquire." 

"How  did  he  walk?" 

"On    'is   own   two   feat,   bejabers!     Faith,   an' 


CRIMSON-EBONY  271 

do  yez  think  that  ivry  paddy  what  hails  frum 
Cork  wears  cork  lages?" 

"Talk  United  States  you  numb  skull,  or  stop 
your  gibberish  altogether!"  ordered  the  chief  tan 
with  some  irritation. 

"Axcuse  me,  sur,  but  Oi  always  intind  to  con- 
varse  in  the  since  an'  brogue  o'  me  coompany. 
Oi  didn't  mane  to  spake  in  terms  aboove  yer 
comprehinsion. ' ' 

"You  are  the  bagatelle  of  this  company,  Mike, 
and  you  have  said  enough." 

"Shuer,  an'  Oi'll  be  after  o'  tellin'  narry  a 
thing  o'  the  kind.  Belave  Mike  Ruhlin  to  kape 
'is  clam  shut  whin  it's  not  fur  the  good  ave  the 
order  to  kape  it  open." 

"Throw  the  fool  out  an'  be  done  with  'im," 
suggested  Oscar  in  some  heat. 

Mike  jumped  to  his  feet  like  a  flash  and,  shak- 
ing his  fist  at  Morgan,  began,  "An'  yez  'ill  be 
compilled  to  let  oout  that  job  by  contrac',  Misther 
Morgan.  'F  yez  dare  to  lay  one  ave  them  slimy 
paws  ave  yez  on  me  Oi'll  lambaste  that  bleared 
mug  ave  yez  till  yer  mither  won't  know  'er  dar- 
lint,  ye  dirty  spalpeen  ave — ' 

By  this  time  Ed  was  on  his  feet  too,  and  spoke 
in  a  tone  not  to  be  misunderstood.  "Shut  your 
mouth,  Mike,  and  no  more  of  your  blarney  and 
blow  tonight.  Sit  down." 

Mike  meekly  obeyed  but  muttered  as  he  seated 
himself,  "Oi'll  be  sated  fur  the  young  bos  but 
Oi  won't  take  inny  back  taalk  frum  inny  bloody 
Wilchman  in  Ameircy." 

Curley  had  gone  to  sleep  beside  his  wide. awake 
companion  though  the  senses  of  the  other  occu- 
pants of  the  room  received  stimulus  from  the 


272  A  FAST  GAME 

breezy  altercation  that  had  already  blown  over. 
The  hour  was  late  and,  judging  from  outward 
appearances,  what  other  business  there  was  to 
do  at  that  session  must  be  done  at  once  before 
the  aroused  senses  of  the  men's  minds  succumbed 
to  further  stupefaction. 

"The  only  matter  not  already  disposed  of  is 
the  case  of  Tom.  From  what  we  have  learned 
from  Mike,  Tom  is  in  town  again." 

"Indade,  'e  is,"  broke  in  Mike,  but  from  all 
appearances  he  would  talk  no  more  that  night. 
His  tongue  thickened  and  his  chin  slowly  dropped 
to  his  breast  and  he  began  snoring  in  company 
with  Curley. 

"Tom  has,  no  doubt,  left  his  Sunday  school 
business,"  continued  Ed,  "like  a  dog  has  re- 
turned to  his  vomit  and  the  sooner  he  is  blown 
into  kingdom  come  the  better  for  the  community 
and  the  better  for  him." 

Oscar,  John,  Jr.,  and  Ed  then  drew  up  closer 
together  and  began  to  speak  in  lower  tones  and 
more  confidentially. 

"If  Tom  is  at  home  at  all,"  suggested  John,  Jr., 
"he  is  home  at  night.  Peradventure,  if  he  is 
not  drinking  again,  he  will  immediately  com- 
municate with  The  Black  Diamond  Company 
which  interview  will  retard  the  execution  of  our 
plans." 

"That's  *o,"  said  Oscar.  "I'll  watch  the  office 
tomorrow  an'  see  that  he  don't  git  in  an'  by  the 
night  I'll  git  Curley  er  Mike  to  use  a  little  dyna- 
mite." 

The  voice  of  Oscar  seemed  to  disturb  the  dreams 
of  the  Irishman  for  he  shifted  uneasily  in  his  chair 
and  muttered,  "Welchie — lies." 


CRIMSON-EBONY  273 

But  the  triumvirate  paid  no  attention  to  the 
mumbling  sleeper.  Their  sole  hope  for  gain  lay 
in  the  conviction  that  Benjamin  Slocum  and 
James  Ransom  would  waver  before  the  joint 
pressure  of  the  ebony-red  and  a  handsome  bonus 
be  obtained  from  each,  if  the  influence  of  others 
could  be  kept  from  them;  in  other  words,  they 
considered  these  two  men  weaker  in  character 
than  some  of  their  fellows.  Whether  their  con- 
ception of  weak  and  strong  character  proved 
correct  remains  to  be  seen. 

"Would  it  not  be  advisable  to  enlist  the  services 
of  your  brother,  the  doctor?"  asked  John,  Jr.,  of 
Oscar.  "He  could  easily  incapacitate  Hiram 
Slocum  for  immediate  counsel  and  yet  not  per- 
manently impare  the  old  gentleman's  health." 

"Hugh!"  grunted  Oscar  in  perfect  astonish- 
ment; "I'd  as  soon  approach  the  devil  'imself  as 
Evan  to  git  'im  to  do  a  thing  like  that.  If  it  do 
be  for  'im  to  lay  out  Tom  I  might  think  about  it." 

"Pardon  me,  for  making  the  assertion,"  apolo- 
getically chimed  in  John,  Jr.,  "I  meant  no  in- 
vidious insinuation  on  the  character  of  your 
brother,  only  an  incidental  suggestion." 

"Let  me  see,"  mused  Ed.  "Tomorrow  is 
Saturday.  Supposing,  Oscar,  you  get  Mike  or 
Curley  to  put  Tom  to  sleep  tomorrow  night." 

"Very  well.     I  will." 

"  'S  li-e,  Wilch-ie!"  came  from  the  snoring 
Irishman. 

"Is  that  blubberer  awake?"  queried  Ed,  looking 
suspiciously  toward  the  person  in  question. 

"No!  He's  been  over  the  dam  long  ago", 
answered  John,  Jr. 

"Well,    now,"    continued    the    sagamore,    "to- 


274  A  FAST  GAME 

morrow  is  the  night  for  the  escapade  against  Tom. 
That  is  settled.  Monday  I  will  pull  the  old  man's 
leg  for  a  few  shiners  and  incidentally  pump  him 
concerning  the  business  in  the  mines  and,  if  the 
opportunity  offers,  suggest  that  the  best  thing  for 
him  to  do  is  to  pony  up  to  the  demands  of  his 
secret  red  handed  friend.  Send  him  another  red 
hand  and  set  Wednesday  as  the  time  for  the  paper 
to  mature.  Tuesday  is  pay  day  and  after  Curley 
and  Mike  are  through  with  Henry  perhaps  he  will 
be  glad  to  settle  at  any  price." 

"That's  perfectly  satisfactory,  Mr.  Slocum," 
assented  John,  Jr.  "The  method  of  procedure 
is  most  admirably  planned." 

"And  you,  John,  in  the  meanwhile,  see  where 
your  brother  stands  in  relation  to  the  tone  of  the 
anonymous  letters  he  has  received  of  late." 

"That  is  no  easy  enterprise  to  undertake.  To 
execute  the  same  with  so  recently  a  bereaved 
brother  requires  more  intrepidity  than  is  my 
fortune  to  possess,  therefore,  though  I  fully 
corroborate  with  you  in  the  promulgation  of  the 
project,  it  appears  most  unadvisable  for  me  to 
attempt  to  achieve  any  such  design  under  the 
circumstances . ' ' 

"Well,  now,  ye  do  see  how  easy  it  do  be  fur 
others  to  wark  their  friends,"  sarcastically  put 
in  Morgan.  "I'll  wark  me  brother  if  ye'll  wark 
yours.  It's  a  go  an'  put  'er  there  on  it!" 

Oscar  extended  his  hand  to  seal  the  covenant 
but  received  no  response.  The  speaker  had 
arrived  at  that  stage  of  intoxication  where  the 
intoxicated  is  excessively  daring  in  his  advances 
and  his  mind  exceedingly  flighty.  Turning  to 
Ed,  he  threw  down  the  gauntlet  before  Him. 


CRIMSON-EBONY  275 

"See!  John's  a  coward  an'  hain't  got  the 
grit  of  a  pup.  I  dare  'im,  on  me  honor,  to  ap- 
proach 'is  brother,  Jim.  Say,  Ed,  whas  a  matter 
with  your  apply  in'  the  siphon  to  Norwood;  he's 
in  the  Slocum  fam'ly?" 

"To  the  devil  with  Norwood!"  snarled  Ed. 

"Whas  a  reason?" 

"He's  in  the  Sunday  school  work  again  and  is 
more  pious  than  ever.  Might  as  well  try  to  swing 
Gabriel  around  to  our  way  x?f  thinking.  I'll 
steer  clear  of  him  if  he'll  only  keep  to  himself 
what  he  already  knows." 

"Now  you  understand  how  much  fun  it  do  be  to 
git  shomeone  else  in  a  scrape  that  ye  don't  want 
to  git  inter  yerself.  Guess  we  ain't  all  fools  yit, 
an'  there's  more'n  one  coward  left,  too." 

How  true  it  is  that  "conscience  makes  cowards 
of  us  all."  The  character  of  the  crimson-ebony 
society  had  changed  to  a  marked  degree  since 
Harry  Norwood  belonged  to  it,  both  in  its  mem- 
bership and  in  its  object.  At  the  inception  of 
the  organization,  the  red  hand  and  the  black  hand 
were  different  hands,  each  using  its  influence  for 
the  interests  of  its  individual  party.  In  that 
early  state  of  the  society's  existence  Norwood  be- 
longed to  the  red  hand,  the  legitimate  issue  of 
the  corporation  power;  the  black  hand  played 
the  keys  on  another  board.  Ed  had  wormed  into 
both,  and  combined  them,  after  Norwood  had 
left  the  red  handed  business  forever.  Therefore, 
we  readily  understand  why  Ed  wanted  to  be 
relieved  of  any  duty  which  would  bring  him  in 
contact  with  his  uncle. 

The  beginning  of  the  crimson-ebony  society 
declared  for  revenue  only — a  gentle  pressure  be- 


276  A  FAST  GAME 

tween  the  horns  of  a  dilemma,  either  to  surrender 
some  personal  position  or  principle  in  relation  to 
the  industrial  war  or  pay  the  price.  Money 
would  cover  a  multitude  of  sins  in  the  eyes  of  so 
august  an  assembly.  Little  by  little  the  funds 
for  the  spendthrifts  had  been  forthcoming.  But 
many  of  the  strong  characters  had  ignored  the 
touch  of  these  greedy  hands.  We  all  know  that 
if  the  smoothest  devil  is  ignored  in  his  work  he 
will  apply  his  sharpest  goad.  Practice  in  the 
devilish  art  makes  a  man  a  fairly  good  devil. 

The  crimson-ebony  hands  were  not  entirely  the 
colored  ones  represented  on  papeJ,  for  the  hands 
of  some  of  the  members  had  already,  directly  or 
indirectly,  dripped  with  the  crimson  of  its  brother 
man's  blood.  Natural  opposition  from  men  who 
could  easily  pay  the  price  and  the  ease  with 
which  others  of  less  financial  strength  were  caught 
in  the  trap,  aroused  the  latent  evil  energies  of 
these  financial  ghouls,  stimulated  their  resourceful 
imaginations,  and  spurred  them  on  to  do  things 
now  that  they  never  intended  to  do. 

The  ways  of  sin  are  always  ways  of  de- 
lusions so  easily  followed  because  they  always 
tend  downward,  and  the  descent  is  so  gradual 
that  the  deluded  one  seldom  perceives  his  horizon 
of  righteousness  closing  like  the  curtains  of  night 
till  outer  darkness  falls  upon  him.  To  ascend, 
one  step  encourages  and  strengthens  the  climber 
for  another  higher  step;  to  descend,  the  unfortu- 
nate one  gathers  momentum  constantly,  the 
speed  increasing  slowly  and  almost  imperceptibly 
to  the  end — the  fall.  The  members  of  the  crimson- 
ebony  society  had  unconsciously  sped  on  in  their 
wild  flight  till  they  were  dangerously  near  to  the 


CRIMSON-EBONY  277 

point  of  their  final  leap — destruction. 

"I  guess  that  completes  the  business  of  the 
night,"  said  Ed,  handing  the  bottle  in  turn  to 
his  confederates.  "We'll  go  home  and  wait  the 
results  and  meet  next  Friday  night  unless  other- 
wise planned  between  now  and  then." 

Draining  his  glass  to  the  last  drop  he  arose  and 
led  the  way  out  of  the  room.  The  other  members 
of  the  gang,  one  by  one,  awoke  and  left  the  secret 
chamber,  passed  out  into  the  night  and  went  to 
their  several  posts  of  duty  and  deviltry,  while 
the  game  played  on. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

WHERE    TWO    WAYS    MEET 

Saturday  night  came,  cold  and  stormy.  Late 
in  the  afternoon  the  leaden  clouds  began  to  sift 
ice  dust  upon  the  streets  of  Onaway.  Early  in 
the  evening,  however,  the  wind  veered  to  the 
northeast  and  moaned  through  the  rattling 
boards  and  paneless  windows  of  many  a  coal 
breaker  in  the  valley  and  on  the  hillsides.  The 
shift  of  wind  brought  a  rise  in  temperature  and 
a  soaking  rain — a  driving  rain  that  penetrated 
every  crevice  exposed  to  its  terrific  onset.  Dark- 
ness covered  the  dreary  streets  and  by  eight 
o'clock  nearly  every  business  place  closed  for 
want  of  customers.  Only  an  occasional  footman, 
bent  on  an  errand  of  necessity  and  muffled  un- 
recognizably in  a  storm  coat  and  hat,  hurried 
along  the  sidewalk. 

Now  and  then  the  clatter  of  horses'  shoes 
echoed  along  the  pavement  for  a  minute,  indis- 
tinct at  first,  increasing  to  a  sharp  ring  and  dying 
away  in  the  distance;  while  the  eye  might  follow 
the  statue-like  cabman  on  his  noiseless  rolling 
cab  whirled  along  by  the  rubber  blanketed  horse, 
dimly  approaching  around  the  corner,  into  the 
archlight,  out  through  the  shadow,  into  the 
darkness  and  out  of  sight,  like  a  spectral  black 
278 


WHERE  TWO  WAYS  MEET  279 

knight  passing  with  his  clanking  armor.  The 
motormen  drove  their  cars  into  the  night  while 
they  watched  the  widening  rails  through  the 
glass  window,  fluted  with  the  etchings  of  the 
storm;  their  conductors  munched  their  cold  lunch, 
scanned  the  evening  paper,  whistled  as  they 
watched  the  receding  rails  draw  together  into 
the  night  and,  at  long  intervals,  rung  up  the  fare 
of  a  dripping  passenger. 

"Purty  tough  night,  doctor,"  said  one  of  the 
conductors  to  his  sole  passenger  whom  he  recog- 
nized when  he  took  up  his  fare. 

"Yes,  Joe,  it's  terrific!"  answered  Dr.  Morgan 
as  he  flung  back  his  rain  coat  and  shook  the 
rivulets  from  his  hat.  "It  wouldn't  be  so  bad 
if  a  fellow  could  only  carry  an  umbrella.  This 
is  a  bad  night  for  the  guards  out  around  the 
breakers  and  companies'  property,  though  a 
good  one  for  the  imps  to  work  their  devilish  pranks. 
I  wouldn't  be  surprised  to  hear  of  something  doing 
before  morning." 

"Anything  new?" 

"Oh,  not  especially.  I  imagine  that  under 
ordinary  circumstances  there  would  be  a  whole 
lot  of  news  but,  now,  we  have  got  so  used  to  the 
violence  and  strenuosity  of  the  fight  that  nothing 
short  of  a  pitched  battle  or  an  earthquake  would 
be  considered  news.  The  coroner  is  kept  busy 
taking  care  of  the  murdered  men  and  the  hospitals 
are  full  of  the  victims  of  violence.  I  just  assisted 
in  an  operation  on  a  poor  fellow  up  at  the  Emer- 
gency. Got  a  bad  gash  in  the  dark  and  danger- 
ously near  the  heart,  too,  besides  some  broken 
bones  and  minor  contusions." 

"How   is   your   brother-in-law,    James,    feeling 


280  A  FAST  GAME 

these  days?  I  s'pose  he's  'bout  all  in  over  the 
loss  of  his  wife." 

"Yes,  I  was  up  there  this  afternoon.  He's 
not  able  to  work  any  yet.  He'll  die  if  something 
cannot  be  done  to  distract  his  mind  from  his 
grief.  If  he  could  only  weep  or  get  right  down 
mad,  he  would  come  out  all  right." 

"Busy?" 

"Well,  I  should  say  so!  Haven't  had  my 
clothes  off  for  three  days  and  no  better  prospect 
to  get  them  off  tonight,  unless  it  be  to  change 
these  wet  ones  for  dry.  Tired  my  horses  all  out. 
That  is  why  I  am  with  you." 

The  young  man  yawned  and  lopped  against 
the  end  of  the  car.  Slowly  drawing  his  watch 
from  his  pocket  he  mused  to  himself,  "Ten-thirty!" 
Looking  out  of  the  window  he  said  to  the  con- 
ductor: "I  want  to  get  out  at  Orchard." 

"All  right.     Got  to  make  any  more  calls?" 

"Only  one  more;  up  to  see  Uncle  Hiram  Slo- 
cum." 

"What's  the  matter  with  the  old  man?" 

"Oh,  old  age  and  nervousness,  more  than  any- 
thing else.  He  worries  a  great  deal  about  the 
sons  and  the  mines." 

"The  old  gentleman  won't  last  long  if  this 
kind  o'  business  keeps  up.  Oh,  say,  Doc.,  how's 
yer  sister?" 

"Phebe  is  very  low." 

He  spoke  in  a  subdued  tone  and  with  deep 
feeling.  The  loss  of  his  sister,  Anna,  lay  fresh 
on  his  heart  and  the  thought  of  his  favorite  and 
crippled  sister  following  so  soon  brought  con- 
tortions of  pain  over  his  handsome  features.  He 
arose  and  buttoned  his  coat  tightly  around  his 


WHERE  TWO  WAYS  MEET  281 

neck,  took  up  his  medicine  case  and,  staggering 
toward  the  door  while  the  car  slowed  down, 
concluded,  "I  am  going  to  stay  with  Phebe  from 
midnight  on.  There'll  be  a  change  before  morn- 
ing, and  I  am  afraid,  a  change  for  the  worse. 
Good-night,  Joe!" 

"Good-night,  doctor!" 

The  last  words  died  out  in  the  sound  of  the 
conductor's  bell,  the  car  sped  on  and  Evan  Morgan 
faced  the  driving  storm  to  the  Hiram  Slocum 
mansion.  Naomi  met  him  at  the  door.  She 
was  acting  both  nurse  and  companion  to  her 
grandfather.  Her  own  home  was  just  across 
the  street  where  she  might  have  lolled  in  the  lap 
of  luxury  to  her  heart's  content  without  lifting 
a  finger  to  work,  but  she  preferred  to  be  active, 
doing  somebody  some  good  and  that  somebody 
chanced  to  be  her  grandsire. 

"Good  evening,  doctor!  Come  in,"  she  said 
and  softly  shut  the  door  behind  the  physician. 
"This  is  a  terrible  night!  Remove  your  wraps 
here  on  this  oilcloth,"  and  she  led  him  to  a  corner 
of  the  hall  and  began  to  assist  him  to  obey  the 
command. 

"Good  evening,  Miss  Slocum!"  he  answered 
as  he  followed  whither  his  conductress  led.  "Is 
my  patient  comfortable  tonight?" 

"Yes,  thank  you;  real  easy.  He  is  sound  asleep 
now  and  has  been  for  a  couple  of  hours." 

"That  is  good.  I  will  not  disturb  him.  Natural 
sleep  will  do  him  more  good  than  all  my  medicine. 
Excuse  me,  but  I  will  not  detain  you  longer." 

"Oh,  indeed!  You  are  not  detaining  me  from 
any  duty.  It  is  a  pleasure  to  have  a  congenial 
friend  with  whom  to  chat  a  while.  Won't  you 


282  A  FAST  GAME 

remove  your  light  overcoat  and  sit  down  a  few 
minutes  and  rest?" 

The  doctor  stood  bewildered  by  the  cordiality 
with  which  she  welcomed  him.  He  had  removed 
one  of  his  soaked  gloves  and  drew  out  his  watch. 
His  hesitation  betrayed  his  inclination  to  tarry 
but  the  close  approach  of  midnight  reminded  him 
that  he  must  be  hurrying  home  to  relieve  his 
brother,  Oscar,  and  the  nurse  from  the  bedside 
of  his  sister.  Replacing  his  watch  he  commenced 
rebuttoning  his  coat  saying  the  while,  "I  would 
like  to  chat  a  while  with  you  but  I  am  due  at 
home  in  twenty-five  minutes." 

"Oh,  by  the  way,  how  is  Phebe  now?  How 
stupid  of  me  not  to  have  asked  before." 

The  grave  expression  on  the  face  of  the  doctor 
made  answer.  Naomi  read  his  thought  instantly 
and  said  most  sympathetically,  "I  am  so  sorry. 
You  look  so  weary  tonight,  too.  I  wish  I  might 
relieve  you  of  your  anxiety  and  share  in  your 
long  vigil." 

The  doctor  only  thanked  her  in  a  low  tone  and 
half  groaned,  "I  wish  you  might." 

He  scarcely  knew  what  he  said.  His  heart 
beat  like  a  trip  hammer  until  it  seemed  to  him 
that  it  would  be  heard  by  his  fair  listener.  He 
continued  buttoning  his  coat,  however,  and 
slowly  moved  toward  the  door,  preceded  by 
Naomi  who  faced  him  directly  under  the  hall 
lamp.  Whether  it  was  rain  or  other  moisture 
on  the  doctor's  cheek  she  knew  not,  but  her 
heart  was  touched.  She  longed  to  administer 
comfort  to  his  tired  body  and  smooth  back  the 
wet  and  disheveled  locks  from  his  anxious  brow. 
He,  too,  would  linger  and  worship  at  the  shrine 


WHERE  TWO  WAYS  MEET  283 

of  Cupid  and  receive  the  encouragement  he  so 
much  needed  and  from  one  whom  he  knew  to  be 
thoroughly  competent  to  administer  it.  With  a 
sad  face  he  pulled  his  water-soaked  hat  down 
over  his  eyes  and  laid  his  hands  on  the  door  knob. 

"Goodnight!"  he  murmured  as  he  flung  open 
the  door  and  stepped  into  the  storm,  for  the 
gale  even  swept  the  porches  with  its  pitiless  blast. 

"Goodnight,  with  my  sympathies!"  answered 
Naomi,  pressing  her  hand  on  his  left  hand  which 
held  the  medicine  case.  The  touch  thrilled  him 
like  a  charge  from  a  Ley  den  jar.  The  door 
closed  behind  him.  He  was  once  more  in  the 
rain-washed  street  with  a  touch  that  cheered 
him  and  words  that  thrilled  him. 

"My  sympathies!  What  did  she  mean?"  he 
said  half  aloud  to  himself.  "Why  couldn't  she 
have  said,  'My  love  or  my  prayers?'  Is  sym- 
pathy all  she  has  for  me?" 

While  he  pondered  over  her  last  words  his 
mental  equilibrium  weltered  in  such  utter  con- 
fusion that  he  hastened  on  scarcely  knowing 
whither  he  went,  though  the  angelic  touch  swung 
his  body  on  at  such  a  rapid  rate  that  he  found 
himself  at  his  father's  door  before  he  fully  real- 
ized he  had  been  in  the  storm  and  street  at  all. 

He  entered  quietly.  The  old  clock  struck  the 
hour  of  midnight  while  he  removed  his  coat 
and  high  boots.  He  leaned  heavily  against  the 
chair  before  he  put  on  his  slippers.  In  that 
position  he  would  have  fallen  asleep  had  he  not 
been  aroused  by  Oscar  and  John  Ransom,  Jr., 
who  came  into  the  hall  and  went  out  at  the  front 
door.  The  men  exchanged  low  greetings  with 
him  as  they  passed.  The  doctor  warmed  and 


284  A  FAST  GAME 

dried  his  hands  and  went  into  the  sick  chamber 
to  relieve  the  almost  exhausted  nurse.  His  first 
glance  at  his  sister  convinced  him  that  he  was  in 
the  presence  of  a  dying  girl.  Poor  crippled  Phebe 
would  soon  be  where  the  lame  shall  leap  as  an 
hart.  He  made  up  his  mind  to  call  his  mother 
and  other  members  of  the  family  before  Phebe's 
final  dissolution,  but  not  then.  The  nurse  retired 
and  Evan  remained  alone  with  the  unconscious, 
though  sometimes  delirious,  sister.  Occasionally 
her  eyes  opened  as  if  she  recognized  him  but 
their  familiar  luster  soon  dissolved  into  a  wild, 
glassy,  stare.  And  so  an  hour  dragged  out  its  life. 

The  patient  had  lain  quietly  for  a  few  minutes 
with  closed  eyes.  The  doctor  had  watched  every 
changing  symptom  and,  at  the  moment,  stood 
leaning  over  her  and  noting  the  quiet  natural 
breathing.  He  glanced  at  the  face.  Her  eyes 
were  wide  open,  their  expression  perfectly  natural. 
A  smile  played  around  the  delicate  mouth.  The 
kind  brother  returned  the  smile  and  laid  his  hand 
gently  upon  her  forehead.  The  expression  of  her 
features  suddenly  changed  from  sunshine  to  seri- 
ousness as  if  recalling  something  long  forgotten. 
She  looked  up  earnestly  into  his  face  and  said  in 
a  firm  and  perfectly  rational  voice,  "Evan." 

"What  is  it,  Phebe?"  he  asked  quickly. 

"What  time  is  it?" 

He  looked  at  his  watch  and  answered,  "Ten 
minutes  past  one." 

"Is  it  Sunday  morning?" 

"Yes,  dear!" 

A  smile  brightened  her  face  and  she  quickly 
replied,  "Oh,  I  am  so  glad!  Do  you  know,  Evan, 


WHERE  TWO  WAYS  MEET  285 

that  they  are  going  to  blow  up  Tom  Boland's 
house  at  half  past  one?" 

"Why,  Phebe,  I  guess  you  are  mistaken.  What 
got  that  in  your  mind?" 

"Oh,  I  know  they  are;  Oscar  and  Mr.  Ransom 
said  they  were." 

The  doctor  hesitated  for  an  instant.  He 
wondered  whether  his  sister  was  still  delirious  or 
had  been  dreaming  or  she  had  really  heard  them 
talking  over  a  secret  plot. 

"Evan,  you  must  not  wait  a  minute  but  go  and 
stop  them  from  their  awful  work." 

He  determined  to  test  the  girl's  mental  con- 
dition before  he  placed  too  much  confidence  in 
what  she  said. 

"They  would  not  do  such  a  thing." 

"May  be  they  would  not  do  it  but  they  know 
it  is  going  to  be  done  at  half  past  one  tonight." 

"But  the  nurse  has  been  here  with  you  all  the 
while  and  they  would  not  say  anything  like  that 
before  her." 

"But,  Evan,  I  know  they  said  it  and  the  nurse 
was  out  of  the  room  at  the  time.  You  will  have  to 
hurry." 

The  mind  of  the  watcher  began  to  reason  in 
leaps  and  through  glints  of  contending  emotions. 
He  more  than  half  believed  what  Phebe  stated. 
He  considered  her,  for  the  time  being,  perfectly 
sane  and  a  competent  witness.  That  was  cold 
judgment.  Would  his  brother  be  guilty  of  murder- 
ous conspiracy  against  a  fellow  man  ?  The  answer 
to  the  question  drew  some  heat  nito  his  mental 
processes.  His  brother's  recent  conduct  in  his 
home,  in  the  union  and  in  his  social  relations  had 
not  been  of  a  character  to  bring  credit  upon  him- 


286  A  FAST  GAME 

self  or  anyone  else  for  that  matter.  He  concluded 
that  what  Phebe  said  might  be  true,  and  if  it  was, 
the  plot  ought  to  be  balked  and  the  matter  in- 
vestigated for  the  sake  of  finding  out  Oscar's 
real  character  if  for  nothing  more. 

Counter  to  these  thoughts  arose  the  possibility 
of  his  being  the  investfgator.  Phebe  might  die 
within  the  hour.  He  was  the  attending  physician 
and  his  business  was  to  remain  with  his  patient. 
And  besides,  his  own  physical  strength  was  nearly 
exhausted.  He  could  not  go;  there  was  no  one 
else  to  go  and  no  time  to  find  any  one  to  go.  The 
telephone  was  not  in  the  house  and  before  the 
.nearest  holder  of  a  phone  could  be  aroused  the 
time  for  the  deed  would  have  passed.  More 
heat  arose,  however,  in  his  fiery  reasoning  when 
he  thought  of  his  firm  friend,  Tom,  being  blown 
to  atoms  and  when  it  lay  in  his  power  to  prevent 
it. 

"But  Tom  is  not  at  home,"  he  queried. 

"Yes,  he  is,  too,"  quickly  replied  the  girl, 
"they  said  he  was." 

The  wild  expression  began  to  creep  into  her 
face  again  and  her  solicitude  for  Tom  and  his 
folks  seemed  to  increase  with  it  as  if  she  knew 
she  would  pass  into  unconsciousness  in  a  moment 
more  before  which  she  must  persuade  her  brother 
to  save  Tom. 

"Oh,  Evan!"  she  whispered,  for  her  voice 
diminished  in  volume,  as  she  threw  her  arms 
around  his  neck,  "You  will  go,  you  must  go — 
now.  Never  mind — me.  It — is — 

Her  arms  relaxed  and  the  frail  little  body  sunk 
back  onto  the  bed.  The  awful  spell  had  again 
seized  her.  Before  it  was  possible  for  her  to  re- 


WHERE  TWO  WAYS  MEET  287 

turn  to  rational  thought  again  it  wou  d  be  too 
late  to  save  Tom.  She  might  never  recover 
sanity  in  this  world;  the  symptoms  led  to  belief 
in  that  direction.  But  how  would  he  feel  in  an 
hour  hence  to  face  his  sister  and  answer  her  first 
question  in  the  negative — that  he  had  made  no 
effort  to  rescue  his  friend  and  carry  out  her  re- 
quest? He  could  easily  avoid  embarassment 
there,  however,  by  pleading  duty  to  a  sister  before 
duty  to  an  acquaintance.  But  how  would  he 
feel  to  meet  her  in  the  other  world?  There  could 
no  such  an  excuse  be  made  there;  in  fact,  reasons 
must  be  given  at  the  judgment  and  not  excuses. 
Excuses  never  avail  anything.  Plain  duty  is 
the  clarion  call  always,  everywhere  and  every  time. 
Was  not  his  duty  at  the  bedside  of  his  patient? 
But  death  is  plainly  stamped  upon  Phebe  and 
materia  medica  has  no  dealing  in  it  for  her;  but 
Tom  is  well  and  vigorous.  He  has  no  need  of 
professional  skill,  just  a  notice  that  he  is  in  danger. 
As  far  as  Evan  knows,  he  is  the  only  living  friend 
who  can  serve  that  notice. 

The  beating  storm  made  the  physician  shudder. 
Which  storm?  Not  one  storm  but  two  brewed. 
Yes,  raged  and  raged  fiercely.  Two  ways  lay 
before  him.  He  stood  at  the  parting.  "Which 
way  will  you  take?"  howled  the  storm  of  the 
night.  A  glance  at  the  innocent  features  of 
Phebe  made  answer,  "The  right!" 

Could  Tom  be  his  friend?  He  believed  with 
all  his  heart  that  Tom  stood  between  him  and 
Naomi.  No  one  would  be  the  wiser  if  the 
whole  Boland  family  were  blown  to  atoms.  The 
secret  remained  in  his  heart.  Secret?  Are  the 
mutterings  of  a  delirious  girl  sufficient  testimony 


288  A  FAST  GAME 

to  condemn  any  one?  Evan  Morgan's  mind,  by 
this  time,  had  reached  white  heat,  upon  which  his 
conscience  played  like  a  rapidly  revolving  wheel, 
emitting  sparks  of  fiery  passion.  The  hum  of  his 
psychological  machinery  drowned  the  howling 
elements  of  the  night.  In  spite  of  everything  he 
fostered  no  motive  other  than  to  play  the  man. 
He  looked  at  his  watch.  It  recorded  one-fifteen. 
In  fifteen  minutes  more  Tom  may  go  into  eternity. 
The  doomed  house  stood  at  least  ten  minutes' 
walk  from  the  Morgan  home,  but  the  distance, 
by  running,  could  be  made  in  five.  He  bent  over 
and  kissed  Phebe's  passive  face.  He  fancied 
that  he  saw  a  smile  of  approval  curl  around  the 
fading  dimples^  His  heart  leaped  for  joy. 

The  good  omens  had  appeared  and  made  plain 
his  path.  Perfect  calm  reigned  in  the  bosom  of 
the  man.  He  hastily  sought  the  couch  of  the 
nurse,  aroused  her  and  hastened  to  the  door.  He 
had  no  time  to  clothe  his  body  against  the  external 
elements  but  dashed  into  the  night  with  slippers 
and  smoking  jacket.  The  violence  of  the  wind 
almost  took  him  from  his  feet.  He  held  on  to  the 
porch  post  and  slowly  descended  the  steps,  at 
the  same  time,  getting  his  eyes  accustomed  to 
the  darkness.  The  darkness  was  intense  in  the 
driving  downpour  of  water. 

Evan's  home  was  in  the  middle  of  the  block  so 
that  the  lights  from  the  corners  shone  dim  and 
treacherous.  He  had  scarcely  entered  the  street 
and  broke  into  a  run  when  a  slipper  flew  off. 
He  rushed  on  as  the  light  increased,  and  dashed 
over  the  crossing  at  a  breakneck  pace.  When  he 
hurried  on  into  the  increasing  shadow  he  became 
conscious  that  the  other  slipper  was  gone  too. 


WHERE  TWO  WAYS  MEET  289 

Away  he  sped,  however,  and  covered  the  next 
two  blocks  in  something  like  his  old  college  football 
speed,  his  feet  making  no  noise  except  the  light 
pat,  pat  along  the  wet  sidewalk.  The  rain 
drenched  him  to  the  skin  before  he  made  the  first 
crossing  but  it  did  not  dampen  his  energy.  He 
ran  for  a  friend  and  for  duty  and  not  for  a  prize. 

Half  way  to  the  Boland  home  he  left  the  main 
avenue  and  dashed  down  a  secondary  street  toward 
the  patch  and,  to  his  utter  confusion,  discovered 
that  the  electric  lights  were  out.  Absolute 
darkness  prevailed.  He  could  see  nothing  except 
as  he  turned  and  looked  backward  toward  the 
light  at  the  corner  of  the  avenue.  As  he  turned 
to  get  his  bearings  he  ran  off  the  curbing  and  fell 
headlong.  Two  or  three  cobble  stones  received 
him.  He  sprang  up  in  pain  and  took  the  middle 
of  the  street  for  his  runway.  On  he  went  till 
the  rear  light  appeared  as  faintly  in  the  distance 
as  a  nebula  in  the  deep  blue  of  the  firmament. 
But  he  must  turn  another  corner  from  which  he 
would  have  no  guide  whatever,  unless  some 
lamp  gleamed  from  a  window. 

Where  was  the  corner?  When  he  considered 
that  he  had  gone  far  enough  he  turned  and  walked 
to  the  side  of  the  street  and,  to  his  joy,  went 
deliberately  into  the  desired  opening.  He  recog- 
nized it  by  a  peculiar  mound  in  the  middle  of  the 
way,  over  which  he  stumbled  and  hurried  on. 
In  his  haste  and  in  the  darkness  he  veered  to  the 
left,  fetched  up  against  the  curbing  and  sprawled 
at  length  on  the  flagstones.  He  then  awoke  to 
the  fact  that  he  must  either  feel  his  way  or  lose 
it  entirely.  He  must  go  down  one  long  block 
to  an  alley  and  then  the  fifth  house.  He  was 


290  A  FAST  GAME 

confident  that  he  had  not  passed  the  alley  so  he 
crept  up  to  the  picket  fence  and  felt  his  way 
along  as  rapidly  as  possible.  Could  he  yet  make 
the  place  in  time  to  alarm  the  threatened  family? 
As  he  half  trotted  and  half  walked  he  bumped  into 
a  belated  man  who  started  with  a  grunt,  "That 
you,  Mike?" 

Evan  then  became  fully  alive  to  the  fact  that 
something  above  the  ordinary  was  going  on  in 
Maffit's  patch  and  that  more  than  one  person 
besides  himself  prowled  around  the  place  for 
good  reasons  or  for  bad.  While  Evan  kept  silent 
and  hastened  on  he  heard  the  unknown  man 
mutter  to  himself,  "It's  fixed  if  Mike  don't  come." 

Just  then  he  came  to  the  corner  of  the  alley  and 
without  hesitation,  crossed  it  and  touched  the 
pickets  on  the  opposite  side.  It  was  the  correct 
place  for  there  was  no  stone  walk,  only  a  cinder 
path  gritted  under  his  tender  and  bruised  feet. 
Around  the  corner  he  flew  tapping  his  watersoaked 
and  blue  fingers  on  the  pickets  till  he  struck 
the  first  gate.  It  was  open  and  swung  across 
his  path.  He  went  into  it  with  such  force  that 
the  impact  expelled  a  groan  from  his  almost 
exhausted  and  panting  body.  But  what  of  an 
open  gate  so  long  as  he  spent  his  energy  in  the  line 
of  duty! 

"One  gate,"  he  whispered  as  he  swung  it  to  and 
trotted  on  as  before.  He  received  a  heavy  bump 
on  the  wrist  and  called,  "Two!"  He  quickened 
his  pace  till  he  thought  he  neared  the  next  gate 
where  he  slackened  up  from  fear  of  running  amuck 
another  open  trap.  He  found  it  closed,  whispered 
the  number  and  ran  on,  repeating  the  process. 
"Three!— Four!— Hello-o  Tom!" 


WHERE  TWO  WAYS  MEET  291 

The  next  gate  would  be  Tom's  and  the  sooner 
he  gave  the  alarm  the  better. 

"Tom!  Tom!  Hello-oo  Tom!"  he  yelled  as  he 
flung  open  the  gate  and  staggered  up  the  walk  and 
hammered  on  the  door.  No  response  came  save 
the  howling  gale  and  the  water  running  down  the 
wooden  eaves'  trough  into  the  overflowing  wash 
barrel. 

"Hello-o  Tom  Boland!"  he  screamed  above  the 
storm,  "Wake  up!  Quick!  Get  up!  Hello 
Tom-m!" 

No  answer.  This  time  a  lull  in  the  wind  made 
the  darkness  so  dense  as  to  be  felt  and  the  hush, 
an  ill  omen  that  some  monster  lay  crouched, 
ready  to  spring  and  plunge  its  fiendish  claws  into 
its  helpless  and  innocent  victim.  Evan  felt  his 
way  to  the  nearest  window  and  pounded  on  the 
sash  and  casing  till  the  panes  of  glass  rattled  and 
the  thinly  sided  and  loosey  constructed  side  of 
the  plank  house  shook  from  sill  to  plate.  In  his 
eagerness  and  excitement,  yelling  at  every  stroke, 
the  impact  of  his  hand  shattered  the  sash.  The 
fragments  rattled  on  the  bare  floor  inside;  the 
driving  downpour  followed  closely  after.  The 
doctor  paused  for  breath  and  considered  what 
next  to  do  to  arouse  the  sleepers.  Withdrawing 
his  hand  from  the  window  he  felt  his  warm  blood, 
mingled  with  the  cold  rain,  drip  from  his  finger 
tips.  The  premises  remained  as  dark  and  as  still 
as  a  tomb' 

"O  ,God!"  he  groaned,  "What  can  I  do  more?" 

The  words  had  scarcely  left  his  lips  when  a 
brilliant  light  flashed  through  the  gloom  and  a 
dull,  heavy  boom  defied  the  roar  of  the  storm  and 
the  earth  trembled.  The  building  rose  from  its 


292  A  FAST  GAME 

foundation,  collapsed  and  fell  into  a  heap  of  ruins 
and  all  was  darker  and  stiller  and  more  sepulchral 
than  before.  The  wind  and  the  rain  pounced 
upon  the  wreck  as  if  to  beat  out  any  life  that  yet 
remained  in  or  near  it,  and  obliterate  every  vestige 
of  a  track  which  any  ghoul  might  have  made  in 
his  nightly  devilishness.  Lights  began  to  stream 
from  the  neighboring  windows  while  screams 
came  from  the  nearest  houses. 

Before  many  minutes  lanterns  moved  up  and 
down  through  the  street,  borne  by  men  who  mis- 
trusted something  of  what  had  happened  though 
they  did  not  know  whose  home  had  met  its  fate. 
The  crowd,  however,  soon  collected  around  the 
Boland  ruins.  Eager  and  friendly  hands  cleared 
away  the  rubbish  in  search  of  the  family  which 
certainly  must  lay,  dead  or  alive,  beneath  the 
pile.  But  they  neither  heajd  nor  found  any 
signs  of  a  human  being  till  a  woman  noticed  a 
small  stream  of  blood  trickling  along  underneath 
a  board.  She  quickly  removed  the  board  and 
found  a  bleeding,  white  hand.  In  another  minute 
a  half  dozen  strong  arms  bore  the  limp  body  of 
Dr.  Morgan  to  shelter  in  the  nearest  house  across 
the  street. 

"Is  'e  alive?"  was  on  every  tongue.  Nobody 
knew.  The  searchers  wondered  why  he  should 
be  there  clothed  as  he  was  and  under  such  peculiar 
circumstances. 

"Indade!  an'  Oi  knows  why  the  doctor  do  be 
haar,"  exclaimed  a  coarse  female  whose  voice 
could  be  heard  above  the  storm.  "He's  got  a 
trate  o'  his  own  pills.  He's  jilous  o'  the  Irish  lad, 
Tom,  an'  attimpted  to  blow  'im  to  smithereens 
an'  git  Miss  'Locum  frum  'im.  He  wasn't  smart 


WHERE  TWO  WAYS  MEET  293 

enuff  to  git  oout  o'  the  way  o'  'is  own  ixploosion!" 
The  rough  guess  of  the  rougher  woman  had  its 
effect  on  the  by-standers.  They  entertained 
grave  suspicions  that  the  intimation  of  Biddy 
O'Toole  expressed  the  truth.  The  police  had 
arrived  by  this  time  and  took  charge  of  the  rescue 
and  the  rescued.  A  little  later  an  ambulance 
bore  the  unconscious  doctor  through  the  night. 
The  hospital,  from  which  he  had  so  recently 
issued  in  perfect  health,  received  him  into  its 
operating  room  as  the  next  victim.  Has  he  won 
or  lost  the  game? 


CHAPTER    XIX 

A    CLASH    AT    THE    MINES 

Sunday  morning  dawned  over  Onaway,  bright 
and  clear.  The  April  sun  shone  from  a  deep 
blue  sky.  In  place  of  the  recent  wet  northeaster, 
old  Boreas  shook  his  dry  frosty  fingers  through 
the  air,  making  the  newsboy  chuck  his  hands 
deep  into  his  pockets  and  the  early  riser  step 
briskly  in  his  closely  buttoned  overcoat.  Where 
the  pools  of  water  had  formed  during  the  storm 
and  slowly  leaked  away  after  the  rain  ceased 
falling,  the  rays  of  the  sun  played  peek-a-boo 
through  the  skim  of  ice  crystals  that  had  frozen 
in  the  receding  flood. 

Here  and  there  a  larger  puddle  had  not  drained 
out  its  life  and  the  ice  had  made  a  solid  surface 
on  which  Arthur  Norwood  carefully  tried  his 
little  foot  to  see  if  the  ice  would  bear  his  weighr. 
The  atmosphere  circulated,  crisp  and  fresh.  A 
perfect  morning  had  flung  back  the  curtains  of 
night  to  a  perfect  day. 

Henry  Slocum  did  not  go  to  church  as  was  his 
wont.  The  superintendency  of  the  Diamond 
mine  took  all  his  time,  taxed  all  his  ingenuity  and 
began  to  drain  his  nervous  energy  and  to  excite 
instinctive  premonitions  of  an  approaching  calam- 
ity. He  read  the  daily  papers;  posted  himself  on 
294 


A  CLASH  AT  THE  MINES  295 

the  proceedings  and  progress  of  the  conventions, 
the  scale  committee  and  the  joint  committees; 
kept  in  touch  with  the  business  and  financial 
pulse  of  the  city;  manipulated  the  controlling 
influence  of  the  working  gangs  inside,  and  the 
policing  squad  outside,  of  the  mine;  and  con- 
tinuously moved  about  or  in  the  mine,  or  slept 
on  a  blanket  somewhere  within  the  limit  of  the 
supposed  danger  line. 

No  persuasion  could  induce  him  to  leave  his 
conscientious  post  of  duty,  for  he  did  his  work 
conscientiously,  without  fear  from  anyone  and 
with  no  intention  of  injuring  anyone.  He  felt 
that  he  harmed  no  man,  at  least,  he  knew  he  had 
not  done  so  intentionally;  therefore,  he  had  a 
right  to  pursue  the  even  tenor  of  his  way  without 
fear  of  molestation  and  to  exercise  his  inherent 
rights  of  citizenship  and  manhood.  He  had  made 
a  study  of  man  and  knew  his  own  kind  like  a  book. 
On  the  strength  of  that  knowledge,  he  trusted 
some  men  and  mistrusted  others,  co-operated  with 
some  and  guarded  against  others. 

Henry  Slocum  regarded  the  sweetness  of  life 
the  same  as  any  other  prosperous  man,  yet,  years 
of  experience  had  convinced  him  to  prize  the 
devotion  to  principle  and  duty  even  above  life. 
We  do  .not  mean  to  say  that  he  never  blundered 
or  erred,  or  that  his  acts  never  provoked  criticism 
— he  was  human  and  "to  err  is  human" — never- 
theless, though  his  mistakes  summed  up  below 
the  average  of  mankind,  they  were  due  to  the 
frailties  of  the  carnal  man  and  not  to  motive,  and 
were  no  more  scouted  by  the  opinionated  world 
than  the  acts  of  many  other  honorable  men,  either 
from  an  ethical  or  from  a  business  standpoint.  If 


296  A  FAST  GAME 

at  fault  in  any  way  the  fault  came  from  the 
head  and  not  from  the  heart. 

He  admitted  that  he  had  head  failures  but  he 
never  allowed  that  he  had  heart  failures.  In 
such  a  spirit  he  promoted  the  interests  of  the 
employes  of  The  Black  Diamond  Company  as 
well  as  the  interest  of  the  firm.  Their  personal 
safety  and  comfort  lay  as  near  to  his  heart  as  his 
own  personal  comfort  and  the  safety  of  the  com- 
pany's property.  This  expostion  of  some  of  the 
traits  of  his  character  may  explain  his  absorbing 
concern  for,  and  the  tireless  activity  with,  the 
critical  business  of  the  hour. 

On  Monday  morning  Mr.  Slocum  stood  leaning 
against  a  pillar  of  coal  by  the  side  of  the  main 
gangway  in  the  mine.  A  safety  lamp  burned 
dimly  in  his  hand  but  it  was  partially  hidden  by 
his  body.  His  clothes  were  soiled  and  bagging, 
his  countenance  denoted  care  and  long  vigils, 
and  his  face  and  hands  wore  only  a  shade  lighter 
color  than  the  coal  against  which  he  leaned;  in 
fact,  his  whole  external  appearance  looked  care- 
worn and  dejected.  While  he  waited  he  watched 
the  miners  hurrying  to  their  several  places  of 
labor.  A  few  saw  him  and  bade  him  a  cheery 
good-morning,  but  more  of  them,  bent  on  their 
work  or  absorbed  in  other  thought,  passed  by 
and  never  observed  the  slender  figure  standing 
in  the  shadow  like  a  statue. 

In  one  of  the  hastening  groups  Henry  noticed 
Curley  and  Mike,  the  dark-skinned  and  black- 
haired  giant  in  the  lead,  though  a  little  in  the 
rear  of  the  group,  and  his  miner  striding  closely 
behind.  By  the  light  of  the  bobbing  lamps  in 
their  caps  and  in  the  caps  of  those  in  their  front 


A  CLASH  AT  THE  MINES  297 

he  read  in  their  faces,  too  plainly,  that  they  were 
not  in  the  mine  in  sympathy  with  its  independent 
operation.  They  will  bear  watching  mused  the 
acting  superintendent  when  he  stepped  into  the 
gangway  and  wearily  wandered  toward  the  stables. 

When  the  whistle  blew  at  six  o'clock  that  even- 
ing, Henry  took  a  masked  position  where  he  could 
watch  the  miners  file  out  and  peg  their  time — a 
method  of  ascertaining  both  the  time  of  each 
workman  and  whether  he  was  in  the  mine  or  out. 
One  by  one  each  sturdy  fellow  passed  out,  stuck 
his  peg  and  either  wended  his  way  homeward  or 
returned  to  his  bunk  in  the  mine;  for  a  few  of 
the  miners  had  no  home  in  the  city  and  dared 
not  seek  a  boarding  place  within  reach  of  the 
taunts  and  threats  of  the  union  men.  Curley 
came  along  among  the  first,  though  alone,  and 
stuck  in  two  pegs.  It  would  not  be  strange, 
however,  if  the  miner  did  not  accompany  him; 
in  fact,  the  helper  nearly  always  came  out  of  the 
mine  hours  after  the  miner  had  quit  work  and 
gone  home. 

But  the  fact  that  Curley  put  in  two  pegs  rather 
than  one — on  later  inspection  Henry  found  that 
the  extra  peg  was  Mike's — was  out  of  the  ordinary 
and  exceedingly  suspicious.  His  first  thought 
was  to  arrest  Curley  on  the  spot.  But  after  a 
moments  contemplation  he  determined  to  let 
him  go,  guard  the  shaft  more  diligently  and 
search  the  mine,  after  all  was  quiet,  to  find  Mike, 
whether  he  was  lying  in  wait  to  do  mischief  or 
lay  dead  and  buried  at  the  hands  of  his  vicious 
laborer.  Acting  upon  this  conclusion,  with  a 
couple  of  reliable  companions,  he  began  the  round 
of  the  chambers  and  gangways  to  find  the  missing 


298  A  FAST  GAME 

miner  or,  at  least,  some  trace  of  his  whereabouts. 
But  no  track  whatever  could  be  found. 

The  coal  about  the  breast  in  which  the  two 
men  worked  was  the  picture  of  neatness  and 
care — everything  was  slicked  up  and  in  perfect 
order.  They  found  no  indication  of  foul  play 
and  no  suspicious  footprints  led  into  unused 
gangways.  They  hunted  through  the  mine,  in 
every  nook  and  corner,  but  in  vain.  Guards 
stood  picket  at  the  principal  positions  in  the 
labyrinth  of  chambers  but  they  heard  no  sound 
in  the  silent  darkness,  save  the  muffled  tread  of 
the  searching  party.  Mr.  Slocum  could  not 
account  for  the  strange  hiding  place  of  Mike  Ruhlin. 

"Either  Curley  is  an  adept  murderer,"  he 
said  with  a  puzzled  look,  "or  Mike  is  no  novice 
in  the  mine." 

"Ruhlin  worked  a  while  in  the  Diamond  afore 
the  suspension,"  suggested  one  of  the  police. 

"I  know  all  about  it."  nervously  answered  the 
superintendent,  scratching  his  head  and  walking 
away.  "That  will  do,  boys." 

The  dismissed  policemen — old  and  trusted 
employes  who  had  been  commissioned  as  tempo- 
rary police — went  to  their  several  stations  and 
thought  no  more  of  the  curious  incident;  but  the 
wily  superintendent  studied  and  syllogized  and 
brought  all  his  inventive  genius  into  play  though 
he  could  make  no  satisfactory  explanation.  Sleep 
went  from  him.  His  overtaxed  mind  longed 
for  the  return  of  Tom  Boland  to  take  charge  of 
the  mine.  He  considered  Tom  able  to  solve 
the  complicated  problem.  In  this  perturbed 
frame  of  mind,  Henry  Slocum  passed  the  remainder 
of  the  night  till,  in  the  darkest  hour  before  the 


A  CLASH  AT  THE  MINES  299 

dawn,  he  received  a  dark  form  at  the  head  of 
the  shaft,  opened  the  guard  gate,  signalled  the 
engineer  and  immediately  descended  to  the 
workings  with  his  strange  guest.  It  was  the 
paymaster  who  had  come  in  disguise  with  the 
wages  for  the  scab  workmen. 

Tuesday  morning  came,  the  whistle  blew  and 
the  carriages  began  their  alternate  ascent  and 
descent,  loaded  with  either  human  freight  or 
coal.  The  underground  workmen  descended  and 
with  them  Curley  who  took  with  him  Mike  Ruh- 
lin's  peg.  The  mystery  deepened  but  reached 
its  extremity  when  Henry  visited  Ruhlin's  breast 
and  found  him  working  as  if  nothing  had  happened. 
Business  of  importance  called  the  superintendent 
away,  though  he  determined  not  to  allow  either 
of  the  two  men  to  leave  the  mine  until  an  ex- 
planation of  their  suspicious  conduct  had  been 
given. 

To  secure  evidence  of  trickery,  if  possible,  and 
to  watch  their  movements,  he  stationed  Lawrence 
Boland  in  a  hidden  position  where  he  could  keep 
them  constantly  under  his  eye.  Lawrence  had 
scarcely  left  the  side  of  his  superior  when  a  police- 
man came  down  the  shaft  and  reported  an  attack 
of  the  union  men  on  the  breaker  and  the  police, 
and  that  a  fierce  fight  was  raging  on  the  surface. 
Henry  immediately  sounded  the  alarm  that 
summoned  the  workmen  to  come  to  the  assistance 
of  the  police,  sprang  onto  the  carriage  with  several 
others  who  were  near  by  and  gave  the  signal  to 
hoist  away.  But  nothing  moved.  He  signalled 
again  but  with  no  better  result.  He  became 
impatient  at  the  delay  of  the  engineer.  Men 
came  running  in  to  the  foot,  but  none  could 


300  A  FAST  GAME 

ascend.  While  they  waited  breathlessly  for  the 
carriage  to  rise  an  old  miner  sniffed  and  said 
"The  devils  'ave  fired  the  'eadhouse!" 

Others  could  smell  the  smoke  then  as  it  came 
down  the  shaft  with  the  current  of  air  from  the 
fans.  The  smoke  explained  why  the  engineer 
did  not  obey  the  signal.  He  had  been  driven 
from  his  post  by  the  mob  which  had  taken  posses- 
sion and  fired  the  headhouse.  Fire  brands  next 
came  tumbling  down  the  shaft,  a  sure  sign  that 
the  fire-bugs  meant  to  roast  the  scab  miners 
alive  or  smother  them  in  a  trap. 

The  men  at  the  foot  stampeded.  They  made  a 
grand  rush  for  the  other  opening  through  which 
they  hoped  to  escape  from  suffocation  and  to 
reach  the  surface.  Men  and  boys  ran  pell  mell 
through  the  gangways  and  doors  shouting  "Fire! 
Fire!  Fi-i-re!" 

Among  the  black  streaked  faces  which  looked 
up  at  him  around  the  foot  of  the  shaft  Henry 
did  not  see  those  of  Curley  and  Mike  and  Lawrence. 
He  fell  to  thinking  again.  In  a  sort  of  bewilder- 
ment he  soon  found  himself  alone  with  only  the 
faint  sound  of  retreating  footsteps  and  the  dis- 
tant ominous  cry  of  "fire!"  reverberating  through 
the  inky  black  chambers.  He  fell  into  a  trot  in 
pursuit  of  the  miners  but  realized,  a  minute 
later,  that  he  would  be  left  behind  entirely  unless 
he  ran  faster.  Then,  too,  he  was  not  very  familiar 
with  the  route  to  be  followed  in  order  to  reach  the 
air  shaft.  Then  he  happened  to  think  of  the 
money  to  be  paid  out  that  evening.  He  was 
already  near  its  hiding  place.  He,  therefore, 
turned  aside,  secured  the  box  and  started  on  again. 
He  ran  but  a  short  distance  further  when  he  came 


A  CLASH  AT  THE  MINES  301 

to  a  fork  in  the  gangway.  Just  as  he  turned  into 
the  left  branch  the  stalwart  form  of  Curley  darted 
out  from  the  gloom,  and,  with  an  oath,  the  laborer 
fired  a  revolver  into  his  superintendent's  face. 

Henry  staggered  forward,  more  frightened  and 
surprised  than  hurt,  though  he  felt  a  sting  in  his 
left  cheek.  Instinctively  he  threw  up  his  right 
arm  to  guard  against  the  next  shot  and  received 
the  full  force  of  the  discharge  near  the  elbow.  A 
dazed  feeling  crept  over  him.  He  realized  that 
he  had  dropped  the  money'  that  Curley  had 
snatched  it  up  and  was  making  off  with  it.  Sur- 
rounding objects  grew  more  and  more  indistinct 
though  in  the  dimness  of  his  vision  he  recognized 
the  set  features  of  Mike  Ruhlin  in  pursuit  of 
Curley.  He  saw  no  more  but  indistinctly  heard 
several  other  shots  fired  and  all  was  still  and 
dark  and  blank. 

When  he  regained  consciousness  and  opened 
his  eyes  the  set  face  of  Mike  Ruhlin  hung  over 
him  like  a  sword  suspended  by  a  hair.  He  felt 
the  horny  hand  of  the  miner  on  his  forehead 
and  a  torturing  pain  in  his  arm,  so  intense  was  the 
pain  that  he  swooned  again.  He  revived  soon 
and  opened  his  eyes.  The  same  face  bent  over 
him  and  the  rough  hands  seemed  to  be  minister- 
ing to  his  wants.  Thinking  that  the  man  had  no 
evil  intent  he  ventured  to  ask  "Where  am  I?" 

"Safe  in  friendly  hands,"  came  the  quick 
response. 

"But  where  am  I?" 

"In  the  Slocum  mine." 

"How  did  I  get  here?" 

"Lawrence  and  I  brought  you  here." 

"Where  is  Lawrence?" 


302  A  FAST  GAME 

"Yonder!"  answered  Mike  pointing  to  the  lad 
who  sat  on  a  piece  of  sjate  a  few  feet  away. 
"Why  have  you  brought  me  here?" 
"To    save    your    life.     The    Diamond    shaft    is 
burning.     You    could   never    have   reached    day- 
light by  the  way  the  others  have  tried  to  escape. 
Many  of  them  will  not  get  through  the  hands  of 
the   union   men   when   they   get   to   the   surface; 
you  certainly  would  never.     You  are  just  the  man 
they  are  looking  for." 

"Am  I  a  wounded  prisoner  or  am  I  a  free  man?" 
"Both." 

"What  do  you  mean?  Explain!"  quoth  Henry, 
who  had  become  somewhat  irritated  by  the  trite 
answers  he  had  received. 

The  evident  tormentor  and  chivalrous,  un- 
known knight  held  in  his  left  hand  the  shattered 
arm  of  the  prostrate  coal  operator  and  with  his 
right  hand  he  gracefully  removed  from  his  upper 
lip  the  straggling  effigy  of  an  Irish  mustache 
which  had  covered  the  well  cut  features  of  Tom 
Boland. 

The  coal  baron  turned  pale  with  emotion  and 
trembled  like  a  frightened  child.  He  threw  his 
sound  arm  around  Tom's  neck,  drew  the  begrimmed 
face  to  his  own  lips  and  kissed  it  over  and  over, 
again  and  again,  murmuring  between  the  kisses, 
in  a  voice  that  quivered  with  excitement  and 
love,  "My  son,  my  son!  I'll  keep  the  secret — 
no  longer!  Thomas  Slocum, — you  are  my — son, 
— my  son!" 

The  late  Irishman,  gasping  for  breath  between 
hugs,  endeavored  to  extricate  himself  from  so  em- 
barrassing a  position,  believing  that  his  employer's 
wound,  together  with  the  excitement  of  the  hour 


A  CLASH  AT  THE  MINES  303 

and  the  many  days  of  nervous  tension,  had 
thrown  him  into  a  delirium.  But  Tom  did  not 
find  his  speech  or  his  freedom  till  Henry  Slocum 
swooned  again.  He  was  conscious  in  a  few 
moments,  however,  and  Tom  said  soothingly  to 
him,  "You  are  perfectly  safe  here,  Mr.  Slocum, 
and  you  shall  have  medical  attention  as  soon  as 
possible." 

"You  think  I  am  crazy,  Tom;  but  I  am  not. 
I  was  never  more  sane  in  my  life.  Once  and  for 
all  time,  I  own  you  as  my  legitimate  son,  and  call 
your  half  brother,  there,  to  witness  the  solemn 
affirmation.  I  should  have  done  this  years  ago 
when  my  lonely  heart  yearned  for  you — in  your 
struggles  against  appetite — and  poverty  and — 
adversity,  but  I  was — too  insane,  too  proud, — 
too  small,  too  untrue  to — reveal  my  real  self. 
Ca^l  me  father,  Tom — call  me  father!" 

The  bleeding  man  rolled  heavily  on  his  hard 
bed  and  caressed  his  son's  arm  as  tenderly  as  a 
mother,  while  the  tears  streaked  their  way  through 
the  coal  dust  on  his  furrowed  face.  He  was  faint 
from  loss  of  blood  and  incessant  toiling,  yet 
happy  because  he  had  unburdened  his  heart  to  the 
world  and  his  only  son.  Turning  uneasily  again 
and  with  much  pain  the  father  looked  into  the 
eyes  of  his  son,  smiled  faintly,  gripped  Tom's 
hand  and  swooned. 

Tom  became  alarmed  at  the  condition  of  his 
patient.  He  knew  that  the  bullet  had  not  struck 
a  vital  spot,  yet,  other  complications,  conditioned 
on  the  patient's  present  state  of  physical  exhaus- 
tion and  mental  perturbation,  might  arise  that 
would  prove  fatal.  He  closed  the  partition  door 
between  the  old  and  the  new  mine  and  made  it 


304  A  FAST  GAME 

as  nearly  air  tight  as  possible  in  order  to  keep 
the  smoke  of  the  burning  shaft  out  of  the  old 
Slocum  mine  and  permit  them  to  live  in  those 
workings.  This  meant  life  to  them  in  one  way, 
but  it  cut  off  their  supply  of  air  in  another,  in  as 
much  as  the  old  mine  fan  had  not  run  since  the 
disaster  which  had  wrecked  the  old  shaft  timber- 
ing. 

Tom  had  thoroughly  ventilated  the  chambers 
the  night  before  and  freed  them  from  all  traces  of 
gas.  but  the  treacherous  firedamp,  quite  abundant 
in  that  mine,  would  slowly  vitiate  the  entire 
workings  when  there  was  no  circulation  from  the 
outside.  In  his  original  plan  Tom  had  not  counted 
on  the  attack  of  the  mob  and  the  burning  timbers 
of  the  shaft;  he,  therefore,  had  met  an  obstacle 
for  which  he  was  not  prepared.  And  besides,  he 
had  a  helpless  man  on  hands  where  he  had  planned 
to  have  a  well  one — a  prisoner  in  the  form  of 
Curley. 

Fortunately,  however,  he  had  gained  Lawrence, 
who  would  be  of  no  little  assistance.  He  had 
schemed  to  get  the  ear  of  Henry  Slocum  before 
Curley  knew  it,  make  himself  known  to  the  super- 
intendent, and,  in  conjunction  with  him,  capture 
Curley,  hold  him  in  the  Slocum  mine  through 
which  they  would  all  escape  and  finally  capture 
all  the  members  of  the  crimson-ebony  gang  before 
they  were  aware  of  a  secret  emissary  among 
them.  Their  seizure  might  be  possible  yet, 
though  a  chain  of  unforseen  circumstances  had 
hedged  up  Tom's  way  so  that  he  was  in  a  pre- 
dicament, to  say  the  least.  He  and  Lawrence 
could  easily  climb  to  the  surface  by  the  emer- 
gency ladders  but  they  could  not  get  their  dis- 


A  CLASH  AT  THE  MINES  305 

abled  comrade  out  unless  they  fired  up  the  little 
boiler,  got  up  steam  and  hoisted  him  out  in  the 
diminutive  basket  and  rusty  trappings. 

The  noise  by  this  method  would  attract  atten- 
tion and  bring  a  mob  down  on  them  more  likely 
than  friends.  It  was  only  mid  afternoon  and 
none  of  them  would  dare  appear  on  the  surface 
in  daylight.  But  they  must  get  in  communication 
with  the  outside  world.  In  the  meanwhile, 
Henry  lay  in  a  swoon  and  the  firedamp  crept 
stealthily  through  the  silent  gangways  upon 
the  men  who  were  minus  a  safety  lamp. 

Slowly  the  boys  bore  the  unconscious  man 
toward  the  foot  of  the  old  Slocum  air  shaft. 
Along  that  tortuous  route  they  frequently  halted 
to  rest  and  bathe  the  forehead  of  their  patient 
in  the  running  water.  At  last,  dripping  with 
sweat,  the  young  men  lay  their  burden  down 
at  the  desired  place  where  they  could  look  up 
through  four  hundred  feet  to  daylight.  Making 
his  bed  as  comfortably  as  possible  with  the  means 
at  hand  Tom  left  his  father  in  the  care  of  Law- 
rence and  hastened  back  to  the  door  through 
which  they  had  come  into  the  mine. 

He  did  this  for  three  reasons:  first,  to  see  if 
the  smoke  still  filled  the  Diamond  mine  and, 
if  so,  to  plug  the  hole  securely  again;  second, 
he  wanted  his  dinner  bucket  in  which  to  take 
some  water  to  the  foot;  and  third,  he  must  do 
these  things  before  it  became  too  dangerous 
to  travel  the  gangways  with  an  uncovered  light. 
He  did  all  these  and  returned  within  an  hour 
to  find  Mr.  Slocum  conscious  and  perfectly  alive 
to  their  precarious  situation. 

"Go,  my  son,  and  leave  me  here  to  die  in  peace," 


306  A  FAST  GAME 

urged  Henry.  "I  am  tired  of  the  game.  You 
will  take  my  place — in  the  firm  and — inherit 
my  wealth.  Give  my  love — to  your  mother. — 
I  die  content. — Law-rence — will — wit — " 

The  coal  baron  had  fainted  again.  Tom 
looked  at  Lawrence,  then  at  the  pale  face  and 
limp  body  at  his  feet  and  then  up  the  shaft.  We 
must  remember  that  this  was  not  a  shaft  where 
coal  was  hoisted;  only  an  air  shaft  with  the  old- 
fashioned  ladders  and  a  light  engine  and  hoisting 
apparatus  attached  to  be  used  in  case  of  emer- 
gency, though  never  for  coal.  The  small  head- 
house  obstructed  the  view  from  the  foot  to  the 
sky  so  that  one  could  never  tell  whether  it  was 
clear  or  cloudy  only  by  the  glints  of  sunbeams 
through  the  woodwork.  Near  the  headhouse 
several  other  small,  company  buildings  stood. 
The  peculiarity  of  the  light  attracted  Tom's 
attention.  He  looked  up  the  shaft  and  studied 
it  long  and  intently;  so  long  that  Lawrence 
finally  asked,  "What's  the  matter.  Tom?" 

"I  don't  know,  but  I'm  afraid  something  is. 
The  daylight  brightens  and  darkens  as  if  volumes 
of  smoke  curled  through  the  timbers  of  the 
headhouse." 

"Do  you  think  the  comp'ny  buildin's  up  there 
do  be  on  fire,  too?"  gasped  Lawrence,  turning 
pale  with  fright. 

"It  is  impossible  for  the  wind  to  carry  smoke 
from  the  Diamond  shaft  to  this  one.  It  is  barely 
possible  that  the  greedy  and  bloodthirsty  mob 
have  fired  the  company  buildings  around  this 
shaft." 

Tom  stood  for  another  moment  alternately 
gazing  at  the  helpless  form  at  his  feet  and  at  the 


"THE    SMALL    HEADHOUSE    OBSTRUCTED    THE    VIEW." PAGE     306 


A  CLASH  AT  THE  MINES  307 

ill  omens  above  him.  Desperation  shadowed  his 
face  and  a  horrible  dread  seized  him.  While 
he  stood  staring  at  the  darkening  daylight  above 
him  something  struck  his  cheek.  He  caught  it 
in  his  hand  and  examined  it  carefully  by  the 
dim  light  he  still  kept  burning.  He  ground  the 
blackened  substance  between  his  thumb  and 
finger.  It  was  a  bit  of  charcoal  from  a  burnt 
shingle.  There  could  be  no  mistake.  Quickly 
rising  from  his  half  kneeling  posture  he  looked 
up  the  shaft  for  a  final  decision.  His  keen  sense 
of  smell  detected  a  whiff  of  smoke.  He  turned 
pale.  His  muscles  rose  in  knots  all  over  his  body. 
A  giant's  strength  seemed  to  possess  him.  Bend- 
ing over  the  unconscious  body  -of  his  father, 
though  he  had  grave  doubts  that  Henry  Slocum 
was  his  father,  he  lifted  him  to  his  shoulder  like 
an  Atlas  and  strode  off  into  a  dark  gangway, 
saying  in  no  uncertain  tone  of  command,  "Bring 
the  lamp  and  pail  of  water,  Lawrence.  There  is 
only  one  possible  way  of  escape  for  any  of  us 
now  and,  no  doubt,  that  way  is  blocked  by  this 
time;  if  it  is,  the  game  is  lost." 


CHAPTER    XX 

SEVERAL    SURPRISES 

While  the  stirring  events  recorded  in  the  last 
chapter  occurred  in  the  mines,  others  of  equal 
and  thrilling  importance  took  place  on  the  surface. 
The  mob  and  riot  had  begun  when  several  non- 
union foreigners  applied  for  work  at  the  Diamond 
mine.  Some  of  their  own  countrymen  got  wind 
of  their  intention  and  determined  to  prevent 
them  by  fair  means  or  by  foul.  On  their  way  to 
the  mine  a  union  picket  approached  the  non- 
union men  to  persuade  them  not  to  work  but  to 
join  the  Union. 

The  attempt  failed.  A  little  farther  along 
another  picket  threatened  violence  unless  they 
turned  back.  Stil  nearer  the  mine,  a  band  of 
union  foreigners  stepped  across  their  path  and 
ordered  them  to  "right  about  face."  The  non- 
union men,  still  superior  in  force  and  numbers, 
ignored  the  order,  pushed  their  fellow  countrymen 
aside  and  went  on.  The  breaking  point  came 
when  a  squad  of  union  men  appeared  in  the  rear 
of  the  scuffling  crowd  and,  flourishing  firearms, 
demanded  a  surrender.  The  general  mix-up  had 
advanced  very  near  to  the  line  of  the  policemen. 

With  a  rush  the  non-union  men  broke  away 
from  their  pursuers  and  fled  toward  the  breaker 
308 


SEVERAL  SURPRISES  309 

and  headhouse.  The  others  gave  chase,  firing 
shots  into  the  air  and  shouting  for  them  to  stop. 
The  police  saw  the  melee  and,  fearing  serious 
trouble,  came  forward  and  ordered  the  pursuing 
party  to  halt.  But  the  order  was  not  heard  or 
purposely  ignored'  for  the  excited  fellows  came 
on  with  a  rush.  The  sight  of  opposition,  instead 
of  subduing  them,  rather  infuriated  them  like  a 
red  rag  before  a  bull. 

The  pursuers  began  to  fire  lower  and  one  of  the 
shots  took  effect  in  a  rear  runner.  The  time 
had  come  for  the  guards  to  take  a  hand  in  the 
affray  and,  forthwith,  they  fired  on  the  union 
men.  The  shot  took  effect,  killing  one  man  and 
wounding  several  others,  besides  maddening  the 
union  men  to  desperation  and  revenge.  The 
battle  opened  in  earnest.  The  aggressive  party 
scattered  and  surrounded  the  mining  plant  all 
the  while  keeping  up  a  constant  fire.  The  onset 
proved  irresistible  to  the  few  half  frightened  guards. 
Before  many  minutes  the  union  party  held  the 
field  and  controlled  the  situation,  someone,  in  the 
meanwhile,  setting  fire  to  the  headhouse. 

It  was  then  that  Henry  Slocum  had  signalled 
the  engineer  and  failed  to  get  a  response.  The 
black  hand  men  had  not  counted  on  this  episode 
which  had,  to  some  extent  at  least,  foiled  the 
execution  of  their  plans.  Neither  had  Tom 
reckoned  on  this  side  issue  that  might  prove 
fatal  to  himself  and  defeat  his  project.  Never- 
theless, he  knew  that  it  would  not  be  safe  for 
Henry  on  the  surface  of  the  ground  in  daylight, 
because  some  of  the  crimson-ebony-dyed  fiends 
lay  in  wait  for  him  in  case  he  escaped  Curley  and 
their  supposed  trusted  Mike. 


310  A  FAST  GAME 

Another  matter  that  caused  Tom  no  little 
anxiety  was  Curley's  escape.  He  knew  not  how 
badly  the  fellow  had  been  hurt.  If  able  to  get 
out  of  the  mine  with  the  others  he  would  inform 
against  the  traitor,  Mike,  and  Tom's  doom  would 
be  sealed.  The  only  hope  of  success  for  the 
Slocum  party  was  in  the  leadership  of  Tom.  If 
he  got  his  evidence  before  the  legal  authorities, 
secured  warrants  and  arrested  the  gang  before 
they  realized  that  they  had  been  outwitted  and 
outgeneraled  by  one,  Mike  Ruhlin,  the  game 
would  be  won. 

Re-enforcements  from  the  city  police  and  the 
appearance  of  the  fire  company  turned  the  tables 
in  the  affairs  at  the  Diamond  breaker  but  too 
late  to  save  the  timbers  in  the  shaft  and  the 
headhouse.  When  the  mob  had  been  quelled 
and  several  arrests  had  been  made  the  attention 
of  the  mine  authorities  was  directed  to  the  rescue 
of  those  who  had  been  trapped  in  the  mine. 
They  hastened  to  the  ventilation  shaft  from  which 
the  miners  were  already  escaping.  When  they 
ceased  to  come  up  four  were  yet  missing  and  no 
possible  way  to  rescue  them  for  the  smoke  already 
came  up  the  shaft  in  volumes. 

Hours  must  pass  before  any  party  could  live 
in  the  mine  and  that  would  be  too  late  to  save 
the  imprisoned  men.  The  names  of  the  missing 
men  were  soon  heralded  throughout  the  city  and 
on  everybody's  lips.  Mrs.  Boland's  cup  of  sorrow 
overflowed  when  she  learned  that  Lawrence  had 
not  made  his  escape  with  the  rest.  No  more 
acute  was  her  sorrow  than  that  which  came  to 
the  Slocum  household. 

Uncle  Hiram,  feeble  and  nervous,  walked  the 


SEVERAL  SURPRISES  311 

floor  and  begged  to  be  allowed  to  go  to  the  mine 
and  superintend  the  rescue  of  the  son  of  his  youth. 
Benjamin  paced  back  and  forth  before  the  shaft, 
chafing  and  waiting  till  it  might  be  possible  to 
lead  a  party  into  the  mine  to  find  his  brother. 
He  had  no  suspicion  of  foul  play.  He  simply  con- 
cluded that  Henry  had  determined  to  see  that  all 
were  saved  before  he  saved  himself  and  that  his 
self-sacrifice  had  delayed  his  retirement  too  long. 
In  this  condition  of  mental  stress  and  impatience 
of  Benjamin,  night  came  on,  intensifying  the 
gloom  and  increasing  the  horrible  forebodings. 

Two  spirits  moved  through  the  blackness  of 
that  night;  the  one  of  sorrow,  the  other  of  joy. 
While  some,  those  who  felt  solicitude,  waited  and 
conversed  in  subdued  tones,  others  rejoiced  and 
conversed  in  tones  of  revelry  and  triumph.  Devils 
rejoice  when  angels  weep. 

"I  say,  Ed,  this  Green  Valley  Rye  's  the  proper 
brand  o'  the  o-be- joyful  to  celebrate  this  victory 
with,"  remarked  Dick  Morgan  smacking  his  lips 
and  setting  down  his  glass  on  the  table,  around 
which  the  majority  of  the  crimson-ebony  crew 
gathered  to  make  merry.  The  Diamond  shaft 
still  smouldered  and  no  one  had  been  able  to 
enter  the  mine  to  search  for  the  missing  men. 
The  boys  around  the  table  in  The  Anthracite 
missed  two  of  their  number  but  the  vacant  chairs 
detracted  nothing  whatever  from  their  hilarity. 
One  of  the  members  of  the  order  that  day  had 
been  unusually  successful  in  securing  funds. 
Ready  cash  always  filled  the  punch-bowl  for  them 
while  the  serpent  stirred  its  devilish  dregs  with 
the  frequent  swishing  of  its  tail.  The  best  brands 
from  the  bar  stood  on  the  table  and  plenty  of  them. 


312  A  FAST  GAME 

Only  Oscar,  Curley  and  Mike  figured  conspicuously 
by  their  absence. 

"Yes,  Dick,  it's  hot  stuff!"  answered  Ed  after 
he  had  sampled  the  before  mentioned  brand  for 
the  third  time.  A  shadow  hung  over  Ed's  face 
like  a  curtain  when  he  entered  the  room  that 
evening  but  it  gradually  faded  under  the  soften- 
ing massage  of  bacchanalian  fingers  and  finally 
disappeared  in  an  exuberance  of  good  nature  and 
familiar  twinkles  of  his  handsome  blue,  bloodshot 
eyes.  "This  is  the  remedy  for  all  the  ills  inci- 
dental to  humanity." 

"Wonder  how  Curley  an'  Mike  'u'd  relish  a 
bracer  o'  this  kind  in  their  smokehouse,  tonight?" 
put  in  one  of  the  foreigners. 

"I  am  afraid,"  said  Ed,  "that  by  this  time  they 
are  in  a  hotter  place  than  a  smokehouse — where 
their  throats  are  so  hot  the  whiskey  would  siss  on 
its  way  down  like  a  laundry  maid's  wet  finger  on 
a  hot  flat  iron." 

The  company  broke  into  a  wild  guffaw,  clinked 
their  glasses  and  drank  to  the  health  of  their 
witty  chief. 

"Mike  wouldn't  drink  the  stuff  even  in  hell  I 
don't  believe,"  responded  another.  "I  never  see 
'im  take  a  drop  o'  nothin'  stronger  nor  water." 

"That  so?"  asked  Ed.  "If  I  had  known  that 
we  would  have  taught  him  better  manners  in  good 
company." 

"  'S  a  fact  all  'e  same-e.  He  alers  give  it  to 
Curley." 

"Curley  deserves  discipline  for  being  a  hog. 
Perhaps  they  are  getting  their  deserts  now  for  their 
incivility;  who  knows?" 

"What's  the  old  bach  smokin'  fur?" 


SEVERAL  SURPRISES  313 

The  departed  cloud  returned  and  hung  in  the 
face  of  young  Slocum,  but  only  for  a  moment 
when  his  thought  had  been  directed  to  the  misery 
of  his  uncle  in  his  underground  prison  or  vault, 
he  knew  not  which,  and,  evidently,  cared  less. 
The  old  scintillant  flash  returned  to  his  look  while 
he  answered  his  questioner  in  that  careless  manner 
so  habitual  to  those  steeled  in  sin  or  familiar  with 
all  forms  of  evil  or  under  the  influence  of  Bacchus 
or  of  all,  "He's  atoning  for  the  sins  of  the  Slocum 
family." 

"But  did  you  converse  with  your  father  yes- 
terday?" inquired  John  Ransom,  Jr.,  while  his 
eyes  twinkled  with  the  fire  of  spirituous  potations 
and  hung  under  his  fawning  brow  like  beads  of 
greed. 

"Yes;  across  the  dinner  table,"  came  the  dry 
answer. 

"And  may  I  inquire  as  to  the  success  of  your 
interrogations  ?" 

"Sure!"  came  a  drier  answer. 

"A-hem!     With  what  success  ?" 

"I  got  another  piece  of  beefsteak,"  came  the 
driest  answer. 

"Ye  got  more  nor  ye  deserved,"  put  in  one  of 
the  gang  whose  tongue  wagged  as  recklessly  as 
the  inebriated  will  that  wagged  the  tongue. 

For  the  first  time  over  the  social  glass  a  flush 
of  anger  flew  into  Ed's  already  reddened  face. 
If  a  thing  is  ever  done  there  must  necessarily  be 
a  first  time.  Ed  had  gone  in  and  out  with  these 
men  of  the  baser  sort  until  familiarity  and  whiskey 
bred  contempt.  He  awoke  to  the  fact  that  the 
man  was  correct  in  his  remark — his  father  had 
given  him  more  than  he  deserved — but  to  be  told 


314  A  FAST  GAME 

so  in  so  many  words  and  by  a  man  who  was  a 
dyed-in-the-wool  criminal  was  humiliating  to  say 
the  least.  Ed's  pride  resented.  The  truth  stung. 
Heretofore,  he  had  controlled  his  satellites  by  the 
wave  of  the  hand  or  a  glance  of  the  eye.  His 
generosity  and  popularity  had  won  favors  from 
his  companions,  but  a  first  time  had  come  when 
money  and  a  free  hand  could  neither  silence  the 
tongue  of  the  insolent  nor  sooth  the  cancerous 
conscience.  He  raised  his  glass  to  his  lips,  drained 
it  to  the  bottom  and  slammed  it  down  upon  the 
table  with  such  violence  that  it  shivered  into  a 
thousand  pieces. 

Every  one  in  the  room  felt  that  something  was 
about  to  be  done.  They  knew  then  that  their 
leader  dwelt  in  a  frail  tenement  of  clay  the  same 
as  the  rest  of  them  and  that  wine  had  leveled 
him  with  other  wine  drinkers.  Ed  knew  it,  too, 
and  burned  with  chagrin  and  indignation  that  he 
should  fall  so  low.  But  one  step  down  leads  to 
the  next.  Casting  his  eyes  in  the  direction  of 
the  speaker — and  his  eyes  emitted  glints  of  the 
nether  regions — he  hissed  through  his  teeth,  while 
the  bits  of  glass  still  tinkled  over  the  table  or 
rattled  to  the  floor,  "To  the  devil  with  your 
insolence!  Another  word  from  you  tonight  and 
your  head  will  go  into  as  many  pieces  as  that 
glass.  Do  you  hear?" 

When  the  words  left  the  lips  of  their  chief  no  one 
in  the  room  dared  move.  If  a  pin  had  dropped 
it  could  have  been  heard.  The  commander 
commanded  again  but  after  proving  his  weakness 
and  worthlessness.  The  sound  of  heavy  footsteps 
approaching  from  the  hall  broke  the  breathless 
silence.  There  was  a  well  known  rap  on  the 


SEVERAL  SURPRISES  315 

door.  The  chief  answered  with  the  usual  call  and 
received  the  corresponding  reply.  John  Ransom, 
Jr.,  then,  sprang  to  the  door  and  admitted  Oscar 
Morgan  who  was  the  picture  of  happiness,  sober 
and  smiling  and  who,  approaching  the  table, 
threw  upon  it  a  roll  of  greenbacks — a  wad  to 
make  the  eye  of  a  miser  shine  with  delight. 

A  silent  flow  of  good  feeling  encircled  the  table, 
though  the  countercurrent  did  not  entirely  sub- 
side. Success  had  already  made  trouble  and  this 
new  find  would  not,  in  the  nature  of  the  case,  oil 
the  tumultuous  waters.  Already,  not  the  success 
of  their  scheme  any  more  than  the  excess  of  their 
indulgence,  had  ignited  the  magazine  of  their 
secrecy  and  fraternity.  Freebooters  can  never 
agree  when  there  is  abundant  booty.  The  spoils 
of  war  spoil  the  spoilers.  The  pendulum  of 
human  nature  swings  to  the  extreme  of  the  arc. 

Oscar  Morgan  had  come  late,  too  late  to  make  a 
satisfactory  division  of  the  illgotten  gains  among 
the  individual  members  of  the  gang.  His  second 
glance  at  the  group  disclosed  the  fact  that  every 
member  of  the  company  was  too  drunk  to  do 
business  fairly.  He  found  himself  the  only  sober 
man  among  them,  not  that  he  was  better  than  they 
but  simply  that  he  had  missed  the  opportunity 
to  indulge  to  the  extent  of  his  companions. 

"Excuse  me,  boys,  for  bein'  so  late,  but  I  think 
ye'll  let  me  down  easy  after  seein'  this."  He 
reached  over  the  empty  chair  of  John,  Jr.,  held 
the  bills  up  for  a  moment  and  put  them  back 
into  his  pocket,  remarking,  "I  thought  I'd  jest 
let  ye  see  the  outside  o'  old  Winthrcp's  opinion 
o'  the  red  hand.  It's  late  an',  after  we've  toasted 


316  A  FAST  GAME 

'round  ag'in,  we'll  go  home  an'  divide  up  the 
stakes  at  the  next  meetin'." 

He  commenced  to  pour  out  his  potation  as  if 
everything  rode  gayly  at  high  tide — as  if  he  pro- 
ceeded in  the  regular  order  of  the  evening's  pro- 
gram. But  his  bluff  did  not  work.  Under  ordi- 
nary circumstances,  however,  all  might  have 
gone  well  but  Oscar  did  not  know  of  the  recent 
tilt  between  his  chieftain  and  a  subordinate,  nor 
did  he  know  of  the  foul  fiend  that  ruled  the  sa- 
chem's will.  Everyone,  who  was  sober  enough, 
held  his  breath,  while  the  liquor  gurgled  from  the 
bottle.  When  the  gurgling  ceased  the  leader 
shoved  back  from  the  table,  reached  out  his  hand, 
and  said:  "I  guess  the  chairman  holds  the 
stakes  until  divided.  Pony  up,  old  man!" 

Oscar  smiled,  lifted  his  glass  and  proposed  a 
toast  to  Edwin  Slocum,  the  pride  and  popular 
leader  of  the  fair  hand  club  of  Onaway,  as  if,  by 
his  good  humor  and  praise,  he  might  deflect  the 
mind  of  the  young  man  from  his  unusual  request. 

"Give  me  that  money,  Morgan!"  he  demanded 
in  a  voice  that  thrilled  his  hearers  like  an  electric 
shock.  The  glass  hung  in  the  hand  for  an  instant 
while  its  holder  looked  straight  into  the  eyes  of 
the  speaker.  The  eyes  meant  business  and  no 
mistake  while  the  tongue  continued,  "Quick, 
or  there'll  be  something  doing!" 

Oscar  drew  the  coveted  pile  from  its  hiding  place 
and  threw  it  on  to  the  table. 

"Be  a  little  more  civil  when  you  hand  anything 
to  a  gentleman,"  said  Ed  as  he  pocketed  the 
money. 

"Hog!"  growled  the  offended  subordinate  from 
the  other  end  of  the  table. 


SEVERAL  SURPRISES  317 

The  slow  fire  had  reached  the  magazine.  Ed 
attempted  to  rise  to  his  feet.  His  mind  worked 
clearly  but  he  had  lost  partial  control  of  his  body 
and  his  temper.  The  second  effort  to  rise,  how- 
ever, proved  more  successful.  With  the  aid  of 
his  chair  and  the  table  he  got  to  his  feet,  roaring 
through  his  teeth  as  his  tall  and  handsome  physique 
towered  above  his  fellows,  "I  told  you  to  shut 
your  head  and  you  didn't  do  it;  now  I'll  shut  it 
for  you  so  it  will  stay  shut  for  awhile!" 

By  the  time  he  got  the  words  out  of  his  mouth 
he  had  his  chair  raised  and  ready  to  hurl  at  his 
opponent.  The  subordinate  jumped  to  his  feet, 
as  quickly  as  whiskey  pickled  muscles  would  allow 
it,  and  shouted  defiance,  "I  dare  ye,  ye  hog!" 

There  was  a  general  stagger  to  unsteady  feet  at 
that.  *  At  first,  the  men  grouped  around  the 
assailants  to  keep  them  apart  and  to  avoid  a 
clash.  But  their  efforts  amounted  to  nothing, 
for  half  of  the  company  was  too  drunk  to  stand 
even  after  it  had  risen.  Ed  saw  the  movement 
of  his  confederates,  whirled  the  chair  about  his 
head  and  shouted,  "Out  of  the  way!  I'll  kill 
him!" 

The  chair  flew  over  the  table  and  crashed  into 
the  window  beside  the  offender  at  whose  head  it 
had  been  aimed.  The  broken  window  glass 
had  not  ceased  rattling  when  the  report  of  a  re- 
volver rung  out  above  the  din  of  the  shouting 
men  and  Ed  Slocum  fell  back  into  the  arms  of 
John,  Jr.  The  hubbub  of  the  revelry-run-mad 
increased  when  the  door  crashed  in  and  a  half 
dozen  blue  coats  entered  and  arrested  every 
occupant  of  the  room  except  Edwin  Slocum, 
who  had  gone  before  a  higher  bar  of  justice  to 


318  A  FAST  GAME 

render  an  account  of  the  deeds  done  in  his  body. 
The  shot  fired  by  an  unsteady  hand  had  acci- 
dentally pierced  the  heart  of  the  leader  of  the 
high  handed  gang  and  he  was  dead.  "Look  not 
thou  upon  the  wine  when  it  is  red,  when  it  giveth 
his  color  in  the  cup,  when  it  moveth  itself  aright, 
at  the  last  it  biteth  like  a  serpent,  and  stingeth 
like  an  adder." 

It  was,  indeed,  the  shuffle  and  tread  of  death, 
which  the  officers  of  the  law  made  when  they 
bore  their  limp  burden  up  the  stone  steps  of  Ben- 
jamin Slocum's  home.  The  doorbell,  that  an- 
nounced their  arrival,  rang  the  ring  of  doom. 
It  was  some  little  time  before  the  master  of  the 
house  could  admit  the  dumb  procession.  His 
heart  had  yearned  many  a  long  year  for  the  son 
who  had  so  often  entered  that  door  in  the  dead 
of  night.  He  had  prayed  and  begged  the  youth 
to  leave  his  willful  ways  and  remain  in  his  father's 
house  as  a  son. 

But  the  indulgence  of  the  mother  had  spoiled 
the  boy,  alienated  him  from  all  that  was  good 
and  beautiful  and  true,  and  allowed  his  passions 
and  appetites  to  course  their  winding  way  down 
the  valley  of  evil  to  the  pathless  beyond,  like 
the  mountain  brook  "works  its  weedy  way," 
ultimately,  to  be  lost  in  the  trackless  ocean. 
Benjamin  was  not  surprised  but  heart-broken, 
"cast  down  but  not  destroyed,"  when  he  saw 
the  stretcher  between  the  two  rows  of  policemen. 
How  could  he  break  the  news  to  the  sleeping 
mother?  The  officers  lay  the  body  in  the  parlor 
and  retired,  with  instructions  to  notify  the  under- 
taker. Mr.  Slocum  then  slowly  climbed  the 
stairs,  wondering  what  to  do  and  what  to  say. 


SEVERAL  SURPRISES  319 

He  sought  the  chamber  of  Naomi  and  broke 
the  news  to  her.  He  then  went  back  to  his  own 
bed  where  his  wife  awoke  and  inquired  what 
he  had  been  doing  at  that  unseasonable  hour. 

Naomi  appeared  in  the  doorway  almost  simul- 
taneously with  her  father.  When  Mrs.  Slocum 
saw  her,  she  rose  up  in  bed  and  wildly  asked 
what  had  happened.  Mr.  Slocum  took  her  hand, 
sat  down  on  the  side  of  the  bed  and  began  to 
break  the  news  to  her  as  softly  and  as  gradually 
as  possible,  but  before  he  had  uttered  half  a 
sentence  the  quick  intelligence  of  the  woman 
divined  the  truth.  She  clutched  her  beautiful 
fingers  into  her  long  iron-gray  hair,  tore  handfuls 
of  the  silky  fiber  from  her  head,  screamed  and 
fell  back  on  her  pillow  unconscious.  Another 
indulgent  mother's  heart  had  been  opened,  pierced 
by  a  dart  of  Bacchus;  and  still  his  befouled  stream 
of  liquid  hell  flows  on.  The  game  Edwin  Slocum 
played  had  been  lost  and  the  stakes  handed  over 
to  the  winner. 

Naomi's  mother  has  never  known  a  rational 
moment  since  that  night.  Day  after  day,  she 
sits  in  her  chair  or  moves  aimlessly  and  harm- 
lessly about  the  house,  mumbling  the  name  of 
Eddie,  and  fondly  caressing  her  imaginary  pet. 

Naomi  passed  from  her  father  to  her  mother, 
then  to  the  cold,  cold  brother  and  then  retraced 
her  steps,  sighing  and  mourning  with  tearless 
eyes.  For  days  she  had  bent  under  the  terrific 
strain  of  administering  to  the  wants  of  the  inno- 
cent victims  of  the  supension  and  of  comfort- 
ing her  aged  grandfather,  but  she  had  never 
conceived  of  anything  like  this  as  possible.  Could 
she  bear  the  burden  alone?  Only  God  could 


320  A  FAST  GAME 

give  relief  and  to  Him  she  went.  He  alone  was 
accessible.  Her  father  had  been  wounded  as 
sorely  as  herself;  her  brother  was  gone;  her 
mother  was  worse  than  gone;  her  grandfather 
was  in  quite  a  critical  condition;  her  Uncle  Henry 
was,  no  doubt,  suffocated  in  the  mine;  Tom 
was  gone  and  Dr.  Morgan  in  the  hospital  at  the 
point  of  death. 

She  sat  in  her  cosey  corner,  silent  and  motion- 
less, peering  into  the  darkness  across  the  way. 
Her  half  paralyzed  senses,  after  many  minutes, 
comprehended  the  fact  that  her  grandfather's 
house  was  also  lighted  up  and  that  men  were 
going  in  and  out.  What  could  be  the  matter 
over  there?  Sick  at  heart  and  trembling  in 
every  muscle  she  threw  a  light  shawl  around 
her  shoulders  and  went  over  to  learn  the  worst 
or  the  best  as  the  case  might  be. 

The  center  of  attraction  seemed  to  be  her 
Uncle  Henry's  room,  and  thither  she  went.  While 
she  ascended  the  stair  her  grandfather  entered 
the  room  just  ahead  of  her.  When  she  imme- 
diately followed,  he  stood,  leaning  on  his  cane 
and  looking  down  into  the  face  of  his  first  born 
son.  At  the  head  of  the  bed  sat  a  man,  be- 
smeared from  head  to  foot  with  coal  dust,  char- 
coal, mud  and  sweat  and  wearing  but  a  coarse 
pair  of  overalls,  an  undershirt  and  a  pair  of  coarse 
shoes.  He  arose  and  left  the  room  when  she 
came  in.  On  the  bed  lay  her  Uncle  Henry,  an 
object  both  comical  and  distressing.  His  right 
arm  lay  swathed  in  bandages  torn  from  a  work- 
ingman's  shirt.  The  bandages  were  stiff  with 
blood.  A  smile  of  contentment  played  through 
a  thick  coating  of  coal  dust.  With  the  black 


SEVERAL  SURPRISES  321 

cosmetic  for  a  foreground  the  whites  of  his  rest- 
less eyes  rolled  up  in  the  background. 

"What's  up  now,  Hennie?"  queried  the  old 
man  when  he  spied  the  plight  of  his  son. 

"It's  all  right,  father,"  cheerfully  though 
faintly  replied  the  son.  "We  have  had  a  pretty 
hard  time  of  it  but  everything  has  come  to  a 
focus  and  on  our  side,  too." 

"What's  the  matter  with  yer  arm?  Ye  look 
's  if  ye'd  stuck  a  pig." 

"Oh,  we  got  into  a  little  scrape  in  the  mine, 
nothing  serious." 

"Ben  standin'  in  front  of  a  pesky  shootin'  iron, 
I  guess.  Hope  ye  wasn't  skedaddlin'  frum  it." 

"No,  father,  I  did  not  run  but  I  found  my  son 
tonight." 

"Hugh!     A  son?" 

"Yes,  father,  a  son.  Tom  Boland  is  my  son 
and  he  has  proved  himself  worthy  the  name  as 
well  as  the  blood.  I  confess  my  wrong  doing  of 
years  ago  though  I  am  proud  of  the  boy  now." 

"I'm  s'prised  ye  hain't  owned  'im  afore  this. 
Why  did  ye  keep  puttin'  on  it  off  so  long?  Thought 
as  much  long  ago.  I  ain't  blind  's  a  bat  yit.', 

"Then  you'll  own  him  as  a  grandson?" 

"Guess  'e  is  whether  I  own  'im  or  not,  ain't  'e? 
Where  is  'e?" 

"Out  there  in  the  hall,"  he  answered,  slightly 
rolling  his  head  in  that  direction. 

The  physicians  and  a  nurse  came  in  at  that 
moment  and  proceeded  to  administer  to  the  needs 
of  the  exhausted  and  wounded  man.  The  old 
gentleman  retired  to  the  hall  to  find  his  grandson 
whom  he  greeted  in  his  cordial  and  homely  manner. 
Naomi  waited  patiently  till  her  grandfather  had 


322  A  FAST  GAME 

satisfied  himself  by  giving  the  proper  reception 
due  to  his  new  found  relative.  When  the  old 
man  finally  retired  to  his  room  and  Tom  started 
to  leave  the  house  to  go  to  his  own  home,  she 
stole  out  of  her  hiding  place  and  followed  the 
begrimed  man  to  the  door.  While  his  hand  rested 
on  the  door  knob  a  pair  of  arms  stole  around  his 
neck  and  a  deep,  long  drawn  sob  from  behind 
thrilled  him  through  and  through;  then  a  sup- 
pressed voice  murmured,  "Oh,  Tom!" 

The  arms  drew  his  face  down  and  Naomi  kissed 
the  blackened  cheeks  over  and  over  again.  Her 
tears  flowed  freely.  The  pent  up  sorrow  found 
relief.  Tom's  strong  arms  held  her  firmly,  else 
she  would  have  fallen. 

"Oh,  Tom!"  she  sobbed,  after  a  long  pause. 
"Ed  is  dead." 

The  news  started  Tom  with  a  pang  of  pain  for 
he  was  not  sure  but  that  he  might  be  partially 
to  blame  for  the  cause.  He  knew  that  he  was 
responsible  for  sending  the  police  to  The  Anthra- 
cite to  arrest  the  gang.  In  the  melee  that  must 
have  followed  Ed  might  have  been  the  victim 
of  the  bullet.  He  knew  not  what  to  say  and, 
therefore,  wisely  held  his  peace. 

"Ed  is  dead  and  you  are  my  cousin.  You 
will  be  my  brother,  hereafter,  won't  you?"  she 
asked  with  a  pleading  tremor  in  her  voice. 

"Yes!"  he  answered  as  he  drew  her  to  himself 
with  his  blackened,  muscular  arms  and,  for  the 
first  time  in  all  his  life,  kissed  his  fair  cousin. 
Today,  they  are  as  brother  and  sister  and  will 
remain  so  forever.  The  two  passed  out  into 
the  early  morning  and  crossed  the  street,  where 
the  one  entered  the  home  of  a  living,  though  lost, 


SEVERAL  SURPRISES  323 

mother,  and  the  other  went  on  to  his  own  home, 
to  his  mother  and  his  half-brothers  and  his  half- 
sister. 

Let  it  be  said  in  passing  that  the  final  triumph 
of  The  Black  Diamond  Company  over  its  enemies, 
secret  and  open,  rests  entirely  on  the  merits  of 
Thomas  Slocum — his  artful  schemes,  their  risky 
execution  and  his  own  conscientious  service  to 
his  employers.  He  wrought  for  them,  not  because 
he  was  of  their  family  but  because  he  was  their 
servant;  not  because  they  demanded  his  self- 
denying  course  of  operation  and  personal  exposure 
but,  as  he  saw  and  felt,  because  duty  demanded  it. 
He  gave  himself  to  their  service  and  received 
the  reward  accordingly.  He  began  his  leave 
of  absence  as  Tom  Boland,  the  poor  reformed 
Irishman,  and  ended  it  as  Thomas  Slocum.  Not 
that  a  Yankee  is  better  than  an  Irishman,  but 
Thomas  Slocum  had  no  trace  of  Irish  blood  in 
his  veins.  His  mother  sprung  from  old  New 
England  stock  and,  in  her  maiden  days,  received 
the  coveted  title  of  "the  belle  of  Slocum  Holler." 
Henry  Slocum  wooed  and  won  her.  They  were 
about  to  be  married  when  Erastus  appeared  in 
the  village — as  handsome  and  as  witty  a  youth 
as  could  be  found  in  all  the  country.  His  good 
humor  and  dashing  manners  lured  pretty  Polly 
Mason  from  her  first  love,  and  the  paths  of  two 
young  persons  diverged  to  run  on  parallel  lines 
of  burning  conscience,  sorrow  and  loneliness,  and 
to  converge  near  life's  sunset  where  the  twain 
became  one  flesh  in  their  only  son  Thomas — 
the  joy  and  comfort  in  their  old  age  and  the  heir 
of  all  his  father's  property. 

Tom  had  learned  the  gang  and  its  doings  by 


324  A  FAST  GAME 

being  one  of  its  members.  He  played  the  role 
of  an  Irishman  to  perfection  and  succeeded  in 
his  undertaking  because  his  former  environment 
had  taught  him  its  secrets.  His  month  of  ab- 
sence from  public  view  he  spent  in  companionship 
with  Curley  whom  he  suspected  to  be  the  tool 
of  others  more  cunning  and  devilish.  Tom's 
intimacy  with  the  man  of  a  dark  skin  and  darker 
heart  drew  from  him  the  narration  of  many  of 
the  past  intrigues  and  petty  crimes,  their  authors 
and  their  actors.  Curley  boasted  that  he  had 
sawed  the  timber  while  the  Diamond  breaker 
was  building  in  order  to  kill  the  contractor,  if 
possible,  because  he  was  distasteful  to  a  certain 
Ransom  family  that  considered  Tom  a  rival  for 
first  place  in  the  favors  of  their  employers. 

Mike  Ruhlin  completely  screened  his  identity 
from  his  confederates — confederates  in  name 
though  not  in  practice.  They  never  mistrusted 
him  in  the  least;  one  or  two  had  noticed  that  he 
did  not  indulge  in  liquor  drinking.  Under  the 
guise  of  feigned  foolishness  and  ignorance  his 
acute  perception  penetrated  the  very  thought 
of  the  secret  schemers  and  learned  all  the  work- 
ings and  every  worker  in  the  organization.  He 
remained  as  the  tool  of  the  gang  till  his  plans 
matured,  when,  suddenly,  the  first  became  last 
and  the  last  first.  Mike  Ruhlin  had  played  his 
game  well. 

When  Thomas  Slocum  realized  that  no  possi- 
bility of  escape  remained  for  them  at  the  secondary 
shaft  of  the  Slocum  mine  he  bore  his  father  to  the 
foot  of  the  main  shaft  whose  timbers  had  so  re- 
cently been  burned  and  ruined.  Most  of  the  heavy 
woodwork  remained  intact  though  all  were  charred 


SEVERAL  SURPRISES  325 

and  weakened.  He  left  Lawrence  at  the  foot 
of  the  shaft  with  his  new  found  father  and  began 
the  perilous  ascent.  The  first  fifty  feet  he  passed 
comparatively  easy.  But  the  farther  he  climbed 
the  deeper  the  fire  had  burned  with  here  and 
there  a  brace  or  beam  or  girder  gone  entirely, 
rendering  further  progress  next  to  impossible, 
to  say  nothing  of  the  fact  that,  should  one  timber 
give  way,  he  wouid  be  dashed  to  death  by  the 
fall  that  must  necessarily  follow. 

Slowly,  carefully  and  wearily  he  climbed  the 
hundreds  of  feet  till  he  crawled  out  on  the  surface 
of  the  ground  more  dead  than  alive  and  more  in 
appearance  like  a  foul  creature  of  the  dark  cham- 
bers below  than  like  a  man.  There  was  no  possible 
time  for  him  to  make  himself  look  respectable 
and  still  save  his  father  and  accomplish  what 
he  had  planned  from  the  beginning;  therefore, 
when  he  had  filled  his  lungs  with  God's  pure  air 
he  jumped  to  his  feet  and  hurried  away  to  the 
police  station.  There  he  made  known  his  mission, 
gave  the  names  of  those  he  wanted  put  under 
arrest,  their  whereabouts  at  the  time  and  the 
nature  of  their  crimes. 

The  officers  did  their  duty  while  he  hastened 
to  organize  a  rescue  party  for  his  father  and 
Lawrence.  The  sun  had  not  yet  thrown  one  of 
its  shafts  of  light  over  the  Moosic  mountains 
before  every  principal  in  the  red  hand  and  the 
black  hand  society  felt  the  power  of  the  law. 
Edwin  Slocum  met  his  fate  at  the  hand  of  one  of 
his  own  kind;  Curley  lay  in  the  Diamond  mine's 
gangway  wounded  and  suffocated;  the  other 
members  of  the  gang  gritted  their  teeth  behind 
prison  bars,  bewailing  their  ill  luck  and  brooding 


326  A  FAST  GAME 

over  what  might  have  been.  They  all  had 
shuffled  their  cards  gleefully,  dealt  them  reck- 
lessly, played  with  them  fiendishly  and  lost  hope- 
lessly; Thomas  Slocum  had  played  the  man  and 
won  the  game. 


CHAPTER    XXI 

PEACE 

The  loveliness  of  May  breathed  into  the  two 
contending  giants — Capitalism  and  Labor-union- 
ism— and  inspired  each  to  do  better  things  so  that 
before  a  fortnight  of  that  delightful  month  had 
passed,  the  miner  and  the  operator  fraternally 
shook  hands  over  their  mutual  grievances.  The 
fight  of  three  years  before  had  been  long  and 
bitter,  attended  with  much  acrimony  and  hatred 
on  both  sides,  leaving  in  its  wake  suffering,  poverty 
and  a  burning  zeal  for  vengeance;  the  Anthracite 
Coal  Strike  Commission  granted  the  award:  the 
second  fight  began  in  much  the  same  spirit  as  the 
first,  worked  off  its  bile  in  a  month  of  demands  and 
refusals,  listened  to  the  cry  of  humanity  and 
fraternity  and  got  down  to  permanent  work;  and, 
while  occasional  moral  ghouls  and  grafters  rifled 
the  innocent  and  pillaged  their  property,  the 
giants  settled  their  difficulties  to  their  mutual 
satisfaction  and  to  the  delight  and  benefit  of  the 
interested  public. 

The  amicable  settlement  was  due  to  great 
leadership  and  healthful  diplomacy,  to  the  fact 
that  the  miner  and  the  operator  sat  down  together 
and  got  acquainted  with  each  other.  The  soft 
hand  met  the  callous  palm  in  the  middle  of  the 
table  in  a  friendly  grasp  while  the  patent  leathers 
327 


328  A  FAST  GAME 

and  heavy  nailed  brogans  rubbed  together  under 
the  table  like  purring  kittens.  Brain  met  brain, 
propounded,  reasoned,  adjusted;  heart  beat  against 
heart,  felt,  sympathized,  loved.  Each  tried  to 
see  as  the  other  saw,  to  feel  as  the  other  felt; 
each  talked  frankly,  honestly,  earnestly,  and 
listened  intently,  eagerly  and  open  to  conviction; 
each  lost  prejudice,  pride  and  preference,  and 
gained  a  friend,  nobility,  popularity  and  power. 
Princely  blood  was  recognized  and  royal  honors 
duly  meted  out  to  royalty.  Capitalism  and  labor- 
unionism  learned  alike  that: 

"The  honest  man,  tho'  e'er  sae  poor 
Is  king  o"  men  for  a'  that." 

The  article  of  agreement  follows:  "Whereas, 
Pursuant  to  letters  of  submission  signed  by  the 
undersigned  in  1902,  'all  questions  at  issue  be- 
tween the  respective  companies  and  their  own 
employees  whether  they  belong  to  a  union  or  not' 
were  submitted  to  the  Anthracite  Coal  Strike 
Commission  to  decide  as  to  the  same  and  as  to 
"the  conditions  of  employment  between  the  re- 
spective companies  and  their  own  employees," 
and  the  said  strike  commission,  under  date  of 
March  18,  1903,  duly  made  and  filed  its  award 
upon  the  subject  matter  of  the  submission,  and 
provided  that  said  award  should  continue  in 
force  for  three  years  from  April  1,  1903,  and  the 
said  period  had  expired. 

"Now,  therefore,  it  is  stipulated  between  the 
undersigned  in  their  own  behalf,  and  as  far  as  they 
have  powers  to  represent  any  other  parties  in 
interest,  that  the  said  award  and  the  provisions 
thereof  and  any  action  which  has  been  since  taken 
pursuant  thereto,  either  by  the  Conciliation  Board 


PEACE  329 

or  otherwise,  shall  be  extended  and  shall  continue 
in  force  for  three  years  from  April  1,  1906,  namely, 
until  March  31,  1909,  with  like  force  and  effect 
as  if  that  had  been  originally  prescribed  as  its 
duration. 

"That  work  shall  be  resumed  as  soom  as  prac- 
ticable, and  that  all  men  who  have  not  committed 
violence  shall  be  reemployed  in  their  old  positions." 
The  cold  words  of  the  document  do  not  express 
the  fraternity  of  those  who  figured  in  the  making 
of  the  agreement  any  more  than  the  cold  notes 
and  words  of  "Home,  Sweet  Home"  express  the 
exquisite  emotion  of  the  singer  of,  or  the  listener 
to,  that  universal  song.  Words  but  faintly 
signify  the  universal  brotherhood,  anyway.  More 
and  more  do  we  recognize  that  the  bard  of  bonnie 
Scotland  was  a  seer  as  well  as  a  singer  and  that 
his  prophetic  words  of  a  better  day  are  already 
coming  to  pass.  We  see  the  glorious  sunrise; 
we  welcome  the  warming  sunbeams. 

"Then  let  us  pray  that  come  it  may 
(As  come  it  will  for  a'  that) 

That  Sense  and  Worth  o'er  a'  the  earth 
Shall  bear  the  gree  an'  a'  that! 

For  a'  that,  an'  a'  that, 
It's  comin'  yet  for  a'  that, 

That  man  to  man  the  world  o'er 
Shall  brithers  be  for  a'  that." 
On    Monday    morning    the    fourteenth    day    of 
May,    nineteen    hundred    and    six,    the    majority 
of  the  mines  in  the  anthracite  coal  fields  in  this 
state  of  Pennsylvania  resumed  work;  only  those, 
which  could  not  be  put  in  order  in  so  short  a  time 
as  intervened  between  the  signing  of  the  agreement 
and  the  fourteenth  day  of  May  and  two  or  three 


330  A  FAST  GAME 

collieries  that  were  on  strike  for  local  reasons, 
remained  idle.  The  Diamond  and  the  Slocum 
mines  could  not  resume  work  because  both  shafts 
had  been  disabled  though  work  went  merrily 
on  in  preparing  them  for  resumption.  Tom 
personally  superintended  the  construction  gangs. 

He  would  still  live  with  his  mother,  though  he 
went  in  and  out  of  his  father's  house  as  a  son, 
until  the  time  should  come  when  her  widow's 
weeds  should  wither  and  father  and  mother 
might,  with  propriety  and  legality,  dwell  together 
under  the  same  roof.  His  home  lay  in  the  su- 
burban residence  quarter  and  not  in  the  company 
house  in  Maffit's  patch.  The  family  vacated 
that  old  battened,  plank  house  the  day  before 
the  explosion  which  relegated  it  to  the  kindling- 
wood  pile.  Dynamite  and  distress  had  cut 
their  stubby  swath  through  the  underbrush  of 
poverty  and  humility  into  the  open  fields  of 
plenty  and  flowers. 

The  May  bloom  had  already  retinted  the  wan 
cheek  of  Mrs.  Boland,  her  eyes  sparkled  with 
some  of  the  old  time  radiance,  her  feet  caught 
some  of  the  alacrity  of  youth  and  her  modest 
mien  some  of  the  dignity  of  womanhood.  Tom 
noted  the  change  with  evident  satisfaction, 
buried  as  deeply  as  possible  the  wrecks  and  sor- 
rows of  the  past,  lived  exclusively  in  the  present 
and  planned  large  things  for  the  future. 

The  Black  Diamond  Company  held  a  special 
business  session  on  Saturday  afternoon  of  the 
twelfth  of  May.  The  place  must  necessarily  be 
at  the  home  of  Hiram  Slocum  for  the  old  man's 
ill  health  did  not  permit  him  to  get  down  to  the 
office,  nor  was  his  son,  Henry,  yet  able  to  leave 


PEACE  331 

his  bed.  The  object  of  the  meeting  was:  first, 
to  reorganize  the  company;  second,  to  choose  a 
superintendent;  and  third,  to  talk  over  things  in 
general.  The  things  in  general  received  hearty 
discussion,  pro  and  con,  and  were  adjusted  with 
a  most  filial  and  fraternal  spirit. 

Tony  Bandelli,  who  had  sufficiently  conva- 
lesced to  be  present,  succeeded  to  the  superin- 
tendency  of  the  Diamond  mine.  They  would 
put  that  shaft  in  operation  before  the  other. 
The  selection  of  a  superintendent  for  the  Slocum 
mine  they  lay  on  the  table  for  the  next  meeting. 
The  reorganization  of  the  company  took  more 
time,  more  nervous  energy  and  more  emotional 
drain  than  all  the  other  business  put  together. 

"Now  boys,"  said  the  octogenarian,  straight- 
ening himself  in  his  chair  by  the  use  of  his  cane 
which  he  held  firmly  between  his  knees,  "the 
time's  come  when  I've  got  'o  quit.  I'm  an  ol' 
has-ben  an'  though  I  don't  blush  at  what  I  have 
done,  I  ain't  fit  fur  nothin'  more." 

"Don't  say  that,  father,"  chimed  in  both  his 
sons. 

The  old  man  did  not  hear  the  words  of  his 
sons,  at  least,  he  paid  no  attention  to  them  but 
went  on.  "There  was  a  time  when  I  hankered 
fur  work  but  that  day's  past.  I  don't  b'lieve  in 
silent  pardnership  no  more  'n  I  do  in  a  padded 
payroll.  You  boys  do  all  the  toughest  work, 
git  all  the  kicks  an'  cuffs  o'  the  business,  while 
I  tag  along  behind — a  sort  o'  tailender." 

"That  is  not  so,  father,  and  you  know  it," 
broke  in  Henry. 

"Recent  happenin's  in  the  fam'ly  has  let  down 
the  bars  fur  me  to  git  out  an'  let  somebody  else 


332  A  FAST  GAME 

git  in,"  the  senior  member  of  the  firm  continued 
with  a  husky  rattle  in  his  voice  while  an  occa- 
sional tear  slipped  out  of  his  eyes  and  bounded 
from  one  wrinkle  to  another  of  his  saintly  face, 
to  disappear  in  the  carpet. 

Henry  lifted  his  head  modestly,  half  divining 
what  next  was  coming  and  seriously  desiring  to 
check  further  remarks,  though  he  knew  not  how 
to  carry  his  point;  Benjamin's  head  dropped 
lower,  showing  a.  beautiful  shock  of  iron-gray 
hair  which  had  noticeably  whitened  during  the 
last  fortnight;  his  mind  so  easily  dwelling  on 
a  fresh  mound  in  the  cemetery  under  the  cold 
clods  of  which  all  his  sorrows  and  heartaches 
could  not  be  buried.  Silence  hung  breathlessly 
in  the  room,  broken  only  by  the  rustle  of  bed- 
clothes as  Henry  rolled  on  his  pillow  and  turned 
his  face  to  the  wall. 

"I  blame  nobody  fur  nothin'  they've  done  me, 
an'  I  feel  fur  the  sorrows  an'  sins  of  my  folks 
jest  as  keenly  's  a  father  er  gran'father  ken. 
I've  blundered  myself,  but  I've  got  two  good 
sons;  better  'n  I  deserve.  Things  ain't  jest  as 
I'd  like  to  have  them  be  no  more  'n  they  suit 
you,  but  so  long  's  they  be  *s  they  be,  we'd  better 
make  the  best  of  it.  That's  jest  what  I'm  gittin' 
at." 

"Oh,  say,  gran'pa!"  broke  in  Arthur  Norwood, 
as  he  darted  to  the  side  of  his  grandsire  with  a 
bouquet  of  flowers,  "here's  some  blue  vi'lets  I 
found  up  'n  the  park  an'  I  want  you  to  have 
'em." 

The  little  fellow  placed  the  dainty  blossoms 
into  the  trembling  palm  and  threw  an  arm  around 
the  furrowed  neck.  "Ar'n't  they  butes?"  he 


PEACE  333 

exclaimed.  "Let  me  show  you  how  to  fight 
roosters!" 

Before  one  could  scarcely  think,  Prince  Arthur 
had  whipped  a  couple  of  violets  from  the  cluster 
of  fragrance,  seized  a  slender  stem  in  each  hand, 
hooked  the  heads  together  and  jerked,  laughing 
with  delight  as  one  of  the  blossoms  flew  from  its 
stem,  "See  that!  That  big  one  got  it  'n  the 
neck  that  time,  didn't  it  gran'pa?" 

"Yes,  Artie,  the  leetle  feller  was  too  much  fur 
the  big  chap!" 

"We're  coming  over  tonight;  pa  'n'  ma  'n'  all 
of  us." 

"That's  nice.  That'll  tickle  yer  ol'  gran'- 
father." 

"Guess  I'd  better  skiddoo  now.  Don't  you  like 
your  vi'lets?"  he  asked  hurriedly  as  he  noticed  a 
few  of  them  drop  to  the  floor. 

"Oh,  yes,  my  dear.  The  posies  is  very  nice. 
Them  few  jest  slid  out  o'  my  fingers  like  a  jack- 
knife  slips  out  of  a  leetle  boy's  pocket.  There, 
that's  all  hunky,  now,"  he  added  when  the  little 
fellow  placed  the  few  stray  beauties  back  between 
the  long  fingers.  "You  ken  fix  'em  up  's  neat  *s  a 
pin.  Now  ye'd  better  scamper  off  to  play." 

"I'm  a  dandy,  ar'n't  I,  gran'pa?  Good-bye!" 
and  the  laddie  departed  as  spritelike  as  he  came. 
While  he  remained  in  the  room  he  frisked  about 
as  if  no  one  else  was  present  but  himself  and  his 
grandfather.  When  the  cheerful  whistle  of  Arthur 
grew  fainter  up  the  street  Hiram  Slocum  resumed. 

"As  I  was  sayin',  I'm  an  old  fogy  now  an'  my 
putterin'  'round  don't  'mount  to  shucks.  I  ken 
still  mog  along  to  suit  my  fancy  but  I  don't  want 
'o  be  tied  up  to  nothin'  I  can't  handle.  I  like  to 


334  A  FAST  GAME 

drive  my  business  an'  not  let  that  drive  er  carry 
me.  I've  druv  my  business  fur  sixty  odd  years 
an'  it's  time  to  quit.  It  seems  that  a  kind  provi- 
dence, though  mysterious,  has  raised  up  a  man  to 
take  my  place.  Tommie,  here,  has  the  knack 
an'  the — " 

"Don't  mention  me  as  your  successor,  grand- 
father," interrupted  Tom,  springing  to  his  feet 
and  moved  by  emotion,  "give  me  something  to 
do  is  all  I  ask." 

"Father  will  have  it  his  way,  Tom,"  put  in 
Benjamin,  "and  the  less  said  the  better." 

The  young  man  reluctantly  seated  himself  as 
the  will  of  The  Black  Diamond  Company  pro- 
ceeded. 

"A  man  who  does  as  Tommie  has,  I  consider  a 
fit  man  to  take  any  job  an'  a  fit  man  to  take  my 
place  in  the  firm.  Therefore,  I,  Hiram  Slocum, 
do  hereby  resign  my  position  in  The  Black  Dia- 
mond Company  in  favor  of  Thomas  Slocum  and, 
to  the  aforesaid  Thomas  Slocum,  I  will  an'  be- 
queath all  my  property.  Fix  it  up  in  proper 
shape  when  Jimmie  Ransom  comes  'round." 

Another  silence  fell,  broken  after  several  minutes 
by  the  rich  and  earnest  voice  of  Benjamin.  "It 
is  well!" 

The  cane  rapped  nervously  on  the  floor  and  the 
old  seer  continued: 

"I  think  you've  all  had  experience  enough  to 
know  there  ain't  but  one  laborin'  class.  Some 
work  with  brains  an'  some  with  muscles  an'  some 
with  both.  They  all  b'long  to  the  laborin'  class. 
Ye  know,  too,  if  a  feller  works  fur  wages  only  he 
don't  deserve  what  'e  gits;  but  if  he  works  fur  the 
right  an'  the  good  of  his  feller  men  he'll  git  'is  pay 


PEACE  335 

all  right,  not  only  in  gold  but  in  somethin'  better'n 
gold.  Because  one  gits  'is  clothes  all  dirt  when 
'e  works,  is  no  sign  that  'e  works  harder'n  the 
one  who  dictates  to  a  typewriter,  ner  does  it  show 
he's  coarser  grained  either.  Nobody  has  no  soft 
snap  if  he's  on  to  'is  job. 

"Head  work  er  hand  work,  it's  all  work.  The 
dif'rence  comes  in  opinion,  in  clothes,  in  looks 
an'  in  manners  but  when  ye  git  right  down  into 
the  core  o'  the  apple  o'  human  life  the  seeds  is 
purty  much  alike.  Strip  us  o'  this  outside  toggery 
an'  all  there  is  of  any  of  us  is  jest  what  we  don't 
see  now.  'Lectricity  don't  show  itself  but  it 
makes  things  go;  it's  that  part  of  us  under  kiver 
that  makes  the  man  an'  keeps  the  things  a  hump- 
pin'.  The  fingers  an'  toes  an'  lages  an'  backbone 
an'  arms  hain't  nothin'  but  the  machinery  that 
runs  when  the  inside  man  tells  it  to.  A  man  that 
uses  either  brain  er  brawn  is  a  laborin'  man;  one 
takes  the  power  direct  an'  the  other  belts  it  on 
to  his  machine,  that's  all  the  dif'rence.  One 
feller'll  sweat  jest  's  much  's  t'other  if  'e  gits  in 
the  collar  where  'e  b'longs.  Then  there's  heart 
work  that  takes  more  gimp  out  of  a  feller  than 
anything  else. 

"Heart  work  's  harder'n  sweat  work,  an'  a  man 
that  won't  do  heart  work  ain't  fit  to  be  called  a 
man.  The  heart's  the  biggest  slice  of  the  Al- 
mighty we've  got  in  our  hull  constitution.  Now 
what  I'm  gittin'  at,  boys,  is  to  show  ye  that  the 
bigger  a  man's  heart  is  the  more  he  ken  do  an' 
the  better  he  ken  do  it  an'  the  work  he  puts  out 
will  be  the  most  lastin'.  The  real  dif'rence  in 
men,  then,  is  in  the  size  o'  their  heart  an'  the  size 
depends  on  the  man's  will  an'  his  exercise.  What 


336  A  FAST  GAME 

I  want  The  Black  Diamond  Comp'ny  to  do  is  to 
hitch  on  to  the  heart  current  an'  jog  right  straight 
on  in  the  simplest  way  in  the  world,  an"  the 
simplest  way  is  the  best  way. 

"I  know  ye'll  do  it,  boys'"  the  old  man  said 
with  a  sad,  earnest  smile  like  the  last  pat  of  a 
father's  hand  on  the  shoulder  of  his  leave-taking 
son,  "I  know  ye'll  do  it.  Barg'in  with  ev'ry  man 
alike  an'  allers  put  yer  heart  in  the  deal.  You 
'11  excuse  me  fur  makin'  this  leetle  speech.  It 
wont  do  ye  no  hurt  an'  mebby  it'll  do  ye  some 
good.  I  hope  so.  It's  done  me  good  anyway. 
We're  all  odd  an'  a  trifle  curious  an'  we  never 
ken  tell  what '11  pop  up  next  an'  coax  us  to  swap 
off  the  best  thing  we've  got  fur  the  showeyest  an' 
most  wuthless  truck  in  life's  pawnshop.  Ye 
know  the  ol'  sayin,  is: 
"  'The  simplest  way  is  allus  best  an'  yet  we  pass 

it  by, 
To  dabble  with  the  tinseled  things  that  catch  an' 

fool  the  eye.'  ' 

And  thus  The  Black  Diamond  Company  com- 
menced its  second  era  of  prosperity.  The  prin- 
ciples of  procedure  were  the  same  as  those  which 
had  characterized  the  company  throughout  its 
existence;  the  methods  of  operation  improved 
with  opportunity;  the  name  of  the  firm  was 
identical,  though  the  names  composing  the  firm 
had  changed.  Legally,  a  trio  held  the  power; 
practically,  a  fellowship  of  four  was  the  motive 
energy. 

The  court  convened  and  the  crimson-ebony 
culprits  came  to  trial.  Thomas  Slocum,  the 
prosecutor,  desired  to  retain  the  services  of 
James  Ransom,  yet,  under  the  attendant  deli- 


PEACE  337 

cate  features  of  the  case,  he  granted  his  friend 
the  permission  to  withdraw  from  the  suit,  in  as 
much  as  members  of  his  immediate  family  were 
the  defendents.  The  almost  broken-hearted  law- 
yer looked  up  into  the  face  of  his  friend  and  re- 
plied: "Not  for  the  world,  Tom,  would  I  leave 
the  case  unless  you  discharged  me  against  my 
wishes.  I  have  repeatedly  warned  my  father 
and  my  brothers  and  my  brother-in-law,  but, 
apparently,  to  no  purpose. 

"Now  that  they  are  caught  in  their  intrigues 
and  dishonesty,  I,  as  a  conscientious  man,  could 
never  sanction  a  decree  that  would  free  them 
from  punishment  any  more  than  any  other  crim- 
inal, even  if  they  are  of  my  own  kin.  'The  more's 
the  pity.'  I  shall  always  be  at  your  service 
in  any  legal  business  that  does  not  involve  the 
surrender  of  my  conscientious  scruples,  and  I 
am  sure  that  such  a  demand  will  never  come 
from  you." 

As  he  finished  speaking  he  lay  his  hand  on  his 
client's  shoulder  and  looked  him  straight  in  the 
eye.  The  manly  look  received  a  manly  response. 
The  interview  had  drawn  the  two  men  still  more 
closely  together  in  confidence  and  fellowship. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  relate  all  the  proceedings 
of  the  trial,  the  results  are  of  more  passing  inter- 
est. The  most  important  witness  was  Curley. 
He  had  told  Tom  confidentially  that  he  had  gone 
into  the  mine  alone,  in  the  place  of  the  fireboss, 
the  morning  of  the  Slocum  mine  disaster  in 
which  Erastus  met  his  fate.  This  amounted  to 
criminal  neglect  of  duty  on  the  part  of  Frank 
Ransom,  the  fireboss,  resulting  in  the  loss  of 
life — a  veritable  case  of  manslaughter.  But  Curley 


338  A  FAST  GAME 

was  dead  and  the  criminals  did  not  incriminate 
themselves. 

The  plot  to  destroy  Tom's  home  amounted  to 
the  same  thing.  Tom  knew  of  the  plot  and 
escaped  its  deadly  meant  blow,  but  the  one  who 
did  the  dynamiting  was  dead.  Enough  evidence, 
however,  wap  brought  out  in  court  to  convict 
every  living  member  of  the  gang  and  put  him 
behind  prison  walls  for  a  long  term  of  years,  and 
to  free  Dr.  Morgan  from  complicity  in  the  heinous 
crime.  The  black  hands  and  the  red  hands 
were  bound  and  the  white  hands  held  the  bands. 
The  truth  had  triumphed  and  justice  had  tipped 
the  scales  on  the  side  of  right. 

Naomi,  sad,  silent  and  tender,  pursued  the 
round  of  her  daily  tasks,  visited  the  sick,  dis- 
tributed to  the  necessities  of  the  poor,  cheered 
the  sorrowful,  inspired  the  discouraged  and 
administered  to  the  needs  of  her  mother.  But 
the  mother  was  gone.  Her  body  remained  in 
the  home,  moved  here  and  there  about  the  house 
and  from  room  to  room,  but  the  caress,  the  affec- 
tion, the  recognition — the  mother — had  gone. 
No  reciprocal  response  whatever  recompensed 
Naomi's  most  filial  devotion.  A  walking  skele- 
ton strode  through  the  house  and  occupied  the 
place  where  highest  honor  sat. 

The  senseless  and  monotonous  mutterings  of 
the  cultured  tongue  but  chattered  a  mournful 
requiem  for  the  departed  spirit,  while  the  body 
moved  about  in  its  accustomed  haunts.  Jab- 
bering goblins  would  be  music  compared  with 
this  mumbling  mother,  and  fantastic  visions, 
scenes  beautiful,  compared  with  those  sightless, 
seeing  eyes.  Naomi's  presence  added  no  com- 


PEACE  339 

panionship  to  the  lost  one,  her  absence  detracted 
no  pleasure.  One  might  as  well  do  service  before 
pagan  gods  to  receive  personal  response  and 
comfort. 

The  middle  of  May  came.  It  was  visiting  day 
at  the  hospital.  For  a  fortnight  Naomi  had 
daily  bent  her  steps  to  that  institution  as  faith- 
fully and  as  regularly  as  the  most  sincere  heathen 
devotee  bends  his  knee  before  his  sacred  shrine. 
Today  the  nurse  smiled  and  told  her  that  she 
might  see  Dr.  Morgan,  for  he  was  much  improved. 
With  a  light  heart  she  tripped  into  his  room. 
The  lightness  vanished  somewhat,  however,  when 
she  saw  the  face  of  her  beloved.  Across  one  side 
of  it  a  serrated  scar  dragged  its  ugly  length, 
terminating  at  the  upper  end  with  a  sightless 
socket. 

In  the  other  eye,  however,  the  old  time  fire 
of  life  and  love  burned  like  a  furnace.  Before 
the  visitor  could  speak  the  doctor,  bolstered  up 
with  pillows,  extended  his  hand  and,  smiling 
with  a  sad  but  cheerful  expression,  said  in  a  soft 
though  firm  voice,  "How  do  you  do,  Miss  Slocum? 
I  am  very  glad  you  came  to  see  me!" 

Naomi  took  the  offered  hand  in  both  of  hers, 
saying  and  caressing  with  the  tenderness  of  an 
angel,  "Why,  how  do  you  do,  Evan?  I  am  glad 
of  the  privilege  of  coming  to  see  you.  I  have 
come  often  before  but  without  success  till  now." 

"Have  you?  Why,  yes,  the  nurse  told  me  as 
much.  It  is  so  kind  of  you.  I  am  sure  I  appre- 
ciate your  interest  in  me." 

The  sadness  of  his  expression  dissolved  into 
hopeful  cheer  when  she  called  him  by  his  given 
name,  yet  he  lay  aside  the  pressing  of  his  matri- 


340  A  FAST  GAME 

monial  suit  to  learn  the  doings  of  the  outer  world 
and  the  fate  of  his  friends. 

"Tell  me  about  Tom.     Is   he  alive  or  dead?" 

"Very   much  alive  and  safe." 

"Thank  God,  then!  I  am  so  glad  that  I  did 
my  duty  to  Phebe,  to  Tom  and  to  myself." 

He  spoke  with  marked  satisfaction  and  ear- 
nestness at  the  good  news.  New  life  seemed  to 
enter  his  body  and  the  shadows  hasten  from  his 
mind.  The  brightness  of  his  face  softened  to 
tenderness  as  he  proceeded. 

"Of  course,  Phebe  is — Phebe  did  not  live  long?" 

"No!  She  went  to  sleep  the  night  you  were 
hurt.  Phebe  is  no  longer  an  invalid." 

Noiselessly  a  solitary  tear-drop  fell  over  the 
pale,  scarless  cheek  and  splashed  its  life  out  on 
the  pillow.  The  cheerful  tick  of  the  nurse's 
watch  alone  ruffled  the  quiet  moment.  Outside 
in  a  near  by  shade  tree  a  robin  sang  his  sweetest 
song.  The  blue  eye  of  the  patient  seemed  to  catch 
new  inspiration  when  it  looked  through  the  window 
into  the  deep  blue  sky  that  bent  over  the  hazy 
Moosic  mountains  in  the  rear  of  the  hospital. 
Apparently,  his  beloved  sister  remained  within 
the  scope  of  his  far  off  vision  for  he  smiled  and 
turned  his  eye  on  the  face  of  Naomi.  He  saw 
love  and  fidelity  there;  so  the  smile  expanded 
and  deepened. 

"Yes,  she  is  well;  but  where  was  Tom?" 

"Disguised  and  after  the  black  hand  fellows." 

"Did  he  succeed?" 

"He  did." 

There  was  a  moment  of  hesitation  before  he 
asked  again. 

"Get  all  the  gang?" 


.  PEACE  341 

"Yes." 

Another  and  a  longer  pause. 

"Oscar — and  Dick?" 

A  flush  of  sympathy  spread  over  the  face  of  the 
questioned  girl. 

"Don't  hesitate.     I  suspected  it." 

"Y-e-s." 

"Then  Phebe  was  right.  I  don't  regret  what  I 
did  even  if  I  had  lost  both  eyes  in  the  attempt." 

"But  you  were  suspicioned — " 

"What!  me  suspicioned  of  blowing  up  the 
Boland  home?"  the  patient  exclaimed  before 
Naomi  could  finish  the  sentence. 

"Yes,  but  you  were  vindicated  at  the  trial," 
quickly  answered  the  girl. 

"I  am  content  then. — I  have  had  an  opportu- 
nity to  meditate  a  good  deal  since  lying  here  and 
my  mind  is  now  fully  made  up  to  what  I  am  going 
to  do." 

His  eye  dropped  for  a  moment,  then  he  looked 
straight  into  the  eyes  of  Naomi  and  proceeded  to 
lay  bare  his  heart  and  tell  the  conclusions  of  his 
cogitations. 

"First  of  all,  Miss  Slocum,  I  ask  your  forgive- 
ness— your  pardon  for  my  proposing  marriage  to 
you  a  few  weeks  ago." 

"It  is  granted,  Evan,"  quickly  responded  Naomi. 

The  promptness  with  which  she  answered  him 
threw  him  somewhat  into  confusion,  but  he 
gathered  his  thoughts  together  and  toiled  on, 
for  what  he  was  saying  cost  him  labored  effort 
and  self-sacrifice. 

"I  have  made  up  my  mind  that,  in  my  present 
physical  condition" — in  the  place  where  a  blue 
eye  once  rolled  with  a  merry  twinkle,  a  hideous 


342  A  FAST  GAME 

hole  turned  toward  the  listener — "it  would  be 
unjust  for  me  to  expect  an  affirmative  answer 
from  you,  much  less  demand  it;  and,  therefore, 
I  willingly  release  you  from  any  obligation  you 
may  have  entertained  of  ever  becoming  my  wife." 

Naomi  gently  pushed  her  arm  beneath  the  neck 
of  her  suitor,  put  her  right  hand  over  the  ugly 
scar  on  his  cheek  and,  looking  tenderly  down  into 
his  open  countenance,  firmly  responded,  "And  I 
have  made  up  my  mind  to  be  your  wife  so  long 
as  there  is  flesh  and  bone  enough  left  of  your  body 
to  hold  your  honest,  self-sacrificing  soul." 

Evan  could  not  object  verbally,  much  less  in 
spirit,  to  the  answer  he  received  for  she  covered 
his  mouth,  first  with  her  lips  and  then  with  her 
hand,  until  the  poor  fellow  fairly  gasped  for 
breath. 

While  this  dramatic  scene  took  place  behind  the 
curtains  a  step  near  the  door  commenced  the 
second  act  and  the  curtain  rose.  Tom  entered 
with  a  cheerful  smile  and,  "Good-morning,  Naomi! 
How  are  ye,  old  boy?"  as  he  took  Evan's  thin  hand 
in  his  healthful  grip. 

"Hello,  Tom!  I'm  awful  glad  to  see  you.  I 
feel  better  already  for  having  callers." 

Naomi  put  her  hand  on  the  brow  of  the  doctor 
and  said  in  the  tenderest  voice — a  voice  dripping 
with  the  fogs  of  pathos  and  the  dews  of  sorrow 
and  love — "Evan,  this  is  my  new  brother,  Thomas 
Slocum." 

The  one  eye  rolled  from  one  to  the  other  but  find- 
ing no  trace  of  humor  or  guile  in  the  expression  of 
either,  he  demanded  an  explanation.  It  was 
quickly  and  explicitly  given  and  received  with 
surprise  and  unalloyed  pleasure.  To  return  the 


PEACE  343 

compliment,  the  patient  and  doctor  if  you  please, 
congratulated  Tom  on  his  well  deserved  good 
fortune  and,  at  the  same  time,  proudly  introduced 
Naomi  as  his  fiancee. 

The  two  men  recognized  each  other'  worth 
then  as  never  before  and,  if  it  were  possible,  their 
souls  were  knit  more  closely  together  like  unto 
"the  soul  of  Jonathan  was  knit  with  the  soul  of 
David."  Approaching  footsteps  along  the  cor- 
ridor of  the  hospital  told  the  visitors  that  the 
nurse  drew  near  and  that  the  call  was  at  an  end 
and  the  game  played.  And  still  "abideth  faith, 
hope,  charity,  these  three;  but  the  greatest  of 
these  is  charity." 


THE  END 


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